The Time Tunnel
by cmar
Summary: PRTF:Nightwing crossover: In 1968 the first time travel experiment went tragically wrong. In 2003 a wouldbe supercriminal makes his move. Eric, Wes, and Jen are caught up in the consequences... Part 6 'Time' Series. Complete.
1. Lunch Hour

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine. 

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references. 

A note about characterization of Nightwing/Dick Grayson and Batman/Bruce Wayne: both, especially Batman, have been interpreted and re-interpreted so many times since their creation in 1939/1940 that it's impossible to say there's a single valid personality for either. I've based them on the comics, but a combination of the various ways they've been portrayed over the years. While Robin/Dick/Nightwing has not changed radically, Batman/Bruce definitely has. My version may not be what you're used to seeing. 

While this is a double crossover, you don't need to know anything about the non-PRTF characters except what everyone knows about Batman. This is a continuation of my Time Force series of stories, and takes place after the events of 'Time Over' and 'Sins of the Fathers'. My story 'Night Time' was a prelude to this, you don't have to have read it, but it probably helps. 

It starts slow, but don't let that fool you... 

The Time Tunnel

* * *

* * *

Lunch Hour

* * *

Wes Collins sighed. On his right side, Jen Scotts responded with a sigh of her own. Across the table, Eric Myers rolled his eyes, and on Wes's other side Gaby Butler hid a smile. Wes stared across the diner, searching for inspiration. He failed to find it in the sun shining brightly through the windows lining the street side of the room, casting squares of light onto the tiled floor. 

Nothing to do but try again. "Jen, come on. There's no reason for us to move out, just because we're getting married." 

"I want a house of our own." 

"But… I don't want to leave Dad alone." 

"He's got Philips." 

Wes sighed again. "Philips is a butler. It's not the same." 

"What happens if we have kids?" 

"The same thing that happened when I was growing up. They'll have a great time in that house." 

"I just don't know… 

"Aren't you comfortable there? Don't you like Dad?" 

"Of course I do. But don't you want to be independent?" 

"Well, sure. But -- I don't see why we have to move out to be independent. Why not keep the family together? Dad, us, our kids someday... What's wrong with all of us living in the same house?" 

"Just like on _Dynasty_," Gaby murmured. 

Wes silenced her with a frown. "Jen, at least think about it." 

"Okay. I'll think about it." Jen's voice was reluctant. 

"Thank God," Eric muttered. 

"But I still say we should get the _Grace_ flatware," Jen continued. 

"Oh, Lord, help me," Eric said, a little louder. "Wes, why don't you just let her get what she wants?" 

"I hate that style, it's ugly," Wes objected. "I like the _Monterey_." 

"Does it really matter what silverware you register?" Gaby asked, with a glance at Eric, who appeared to be grinding his teeth. 

"Of course it matters," Jen exclaimed. "We're going to have to live with that set for years!" 

"But Dad has plenty of silverware…" 

"I want my own!" 

Gaby tried again. "I'm surprised you would still care about that kind of thing in the future. Thought you would think about more important things." 

"It _is_ important," Jen said. "Don't you care what kind of flatware you have?" 

"Sure. I like the _Wal-Mart_." 

"Personally, I prefer the _Supermarket Plastic_," Eric commented. 

With a disgusted glance, Jen turned back to Wes. "If you don't like the _Grace_, how about the _Lace Frost_?" 

"Geez, Jen, that one's so… girly." 

"_Girly_? What does that mean?" 

"I want something more masculine." He grinned, raised an arm, and flexed the bicep. "More _manly_." 

Eric finally exploded. "For Christ's sake, Wes, what do you want, silverware that looks like a dick? Just don't invite _me_ over for dinner!" 

"God, Eric, do you think you could say that a little louder? I think those children over there didn't hear you," Wes said, trying his best not to laugh. He watched Gaby choking on a sip of water, and Jen trying to look disapproving, her lips twitching suspiciously. 

"Well, don't argue about such stupid things, at least not in front of me," Eric said, with an only slightly repentant expression. 

Gaby, recovered now, said, "Besides, you haven't even set a date yet. Why are you worrying about silverware?" 

"What _about_ the date?" Jen asked. "Can we at least decide on that?" 

Wes smiled. "June's the traditional month. How about then?" 

"It's almost June now, how are we supposed to be ready? And I don't know if I want to be that traditional. How about... November? We'd have five months to make arrangements." 

"That's _winter_. I was thinking about _next_ June." 

"A whole year?" 

"A year of listening to you two argue about nothing?" Eric growled. 

"Now our wedding is _nothing_?" 

"And we're not arguing, we're discussing," Wes added. "Isn't that right, Jen, honey?" 

"Of course it is, sweetheart." 

Eric made a disgusted face. "I don't know what's worse, the arguing or the sweet talk." 

"Why are you being so negative about us getting married?" Jen asked. "Afraid Gaby'll get ideas?" 

"No! Of course not," Eric exclaimed with a quick glance at Gaby. 

"Don't worry about me," she said. "I never have ideas." 

"That's not what I meant." 

"Besides, I wouldn't dream of marrying you." Gaby leaned her elbows on the table and grinned at him. 

"Why the hell not?" 

"Because you'd never let me get silverware that looks like a-" 

"Je-sus." Eric cut her off, giving her his best cold stare, the one that made the strongest Guardians tremble. "Think you're funny, don't you?" he asked. 

"I do." She chuckled at his expression. 

"I agree with you on one thing, Eric," Wes said. "We've got more important things to worry about right now." 

"Yeah. The next generation of cyclobots." 

Wes glanced around again. There was a harried-looking woman with three small children at the other side of the room, and a man with light brown hair in the corner. At the sound of the door closing, he looked in that direction to see a dark-haired man, perhaps a few years younger than himself, come in. He took a table by the windows after pausing for a moment to give them a sharp glance. 

"Yeah." He leaned forward and lowered his voice. "If someone's building a new set of cyclobots, we could have a serious problem." 

* * *

Dick Grayson sat down and picked up his menu at the table by the window, regretting his slip, staring like that when he saw Eric, Wes, and Jen. He pretended to examine it while taking another look at the group of Rangers at their table in the middle of the room. They seemed wrapped up in conversation, probably hadn't even noticed him, and if they did, they'd assume he had recognized Eric as the Quantum Ranger or had simply been staring at the Silver Guardian uniforms. 

He looked curiously at the second woman, smaller than Jen, with short brown hair, deciding he had never seen her before. From the body language, she was with Eric. As he was turning his attention to the menu for real, his phone rang. He sighed and answered it. Very few people had the number of his secure cell phone and he had already spoken to Barbara in the morning, so he was already fairly sure he knew who was calling. 

_"Dick?"_

"Bruce." As he had expected, his former guardian and mentor, Bruce Wayne. "What is it?" 

_"Are you all right?"_

"Sure. Why wouldn't I be?" 

_"I heard about your -- incident -- last night. Heard you were injured."_

"Heard it from who?" 

_"There was a leak to the media. Someone in the Silver Guardians. All they said was that you were taken to their infirmary, unconscious."_

"I'm fine. And you didn't need to check up on me." He heard the hint of annoyance in his own voice. 

_"Dick, I was worried. Can you blame me for that?"_

"Well -- I guess not." Slightly mollified, Dick went on. "At least you _called_ this morning, instead of flying out here, breaking into my room and scaring the crap out of me." 

_"I remember you didn't like it, the last time I did that."_ Bruce's voice was neutral, with just a hint of amusement. 

"No, I didn't." 

_"What happened?"_

Dick shrugged. "Not much." 

_"How did you get knocked out?"_

"Why do you want to know?" 

_"Why? I'm concerned."_

"Look, Bruce…" Dick turned away from the other occupants of the diner and lowered his voice. "You're doing this again! I told you the last time, I'm capable of handling a _few_ things on my own. I don't need you to butt in." 

_"I'm not butting in. Maybe I can help."_

"Well, don't help." Dick felt a flicker of guilt, but sternly denied it. "This is exactly what happened with the Matthews case a month ago. You just blew into Bludhaven and took over. I have my own city now, my own life. I need to handle both of them on my own." 

_"I told you I was sorry about that."_ There was a brief pause, then Bruce's voice came again, sounding as if he was forcing the words. _"You were in trouble. I didn't want you to get hurt."_

"Yeah." He sighed. "I know you mean well, but… anyway, it doesn't matter. They said they could handle it themselves. They don't want help." 

_"Who?"_

Dick grinned. "The Rangers. I met them last night. Had a little sparring match with Eric Myers." 

_"The Quantum Ranger? Is he the one who hurt you?"_ Now there was a spark of anger in Bruce's voice. 

"No. He didn't use his Ranger powers, at least not then. It was just a misunderstanding." Dick smiled. "He's pretty good. Held his own." 

_"Against you? I'm impressed."_

"Don't try to flatter me. Then we were attacked. By a bunch of robots, no less. They were trying to rob Bio-Lab. There was a guy controlling them. Average size, pale skin, very light hair. Didn't get much of a look at him in the dark." 

_"Robots?"_ A skeptical tone. 

"No, I'm not kidding. A mob of them. Eric called for help, and two more Rangers showed up. I got hurt in the fight, they took me to the Silver Guardians' infirmary, and they fixed me. I met the other two, Wes Collins and Jen Scotts. End of story." 

_"Robots…"_ Dick could hear the curiosity in Bruce's voice, the interest. _"Wes Collins. I've met his father, Alan. Done some business with him. If he's in trouble..."_

"Don't even start. I asked if I could help, and Eric turned me down. I got the impression they didn't want me finding out too much about them." 

_"We all have secrets, don't we?"_ Bruce paused, and evidently gave it up. _"How long are you staying in Silver Hills?"_

Dick turned his head to look out through the window, the summer sun uncomfortably bright, making him squint as it reflected from cars in the street. "Just tonight." 

_"Well, have a good time. Let me know if anything comes up."_

"If anything comes up, I can handle it on my own." 

_"I'm sure you can. Goodbye."_

Dick said goodbye and hung up, glancing at the four people at the other table again. For a moment regret prickled at him. He had liked Eric, was curious about all three of them, would have liked to get to know them better. It would be nice to just walk up to that table, say hello, sit down and have lunch with them... The disadvantage of secret identities. Maybe Eric had the right idea, not bothering to hide it. 

* * *

"Jesus, can't things ever be just normal around here?" Eric burst out, scowling fiercely. "I'm sick of mutants, robots, supercriminals out to rule the world..." 

"Face it, you'd get bored without this stuff," Wes said. 

"Are you nuts?" 

"Anyway, no point in complaining. Someone's building cyclobots, and we've got to deal with it." 

"You still think it's someone here? Not from the future?" 

"I think so," Jen said. "Captain Logan would have contacted me if they detected anyone traveling to this time again." 

"Maybe you should call him. Tell him what's going on, see if he knows anything." 

"No, Wes, you know they left the communicator only for extreme emergencies. We're not supposed to have any contact unless we suspect interference from another time." 

"Yeah, I know." Wes grinned. "Pollutes the timestream." 

"I think Jen's right. Someone _did_ steal some wrecked cyclobots we had in storage," Eric said. "Gaby, couldn't they have just copied the design?" 

"I don't know about that," Bio-Lab's computer security expert replied. "The hard part would have been the brains. The computers to run them. The software. If whoever took those old cyclobots got the computer parts -- and if they have enough expertise, and the resources -- maybe they could have duplicated them." 

"How hard would it be?" 

"Hard. They'd have to figure out a computer technology two hundred years advanced beyond ours. I wouldn't even know where to begin." 

"Couldn't they have used current computers? Aren't scientists building robots right now?" 

"Well, yeah. But the state of the art is still at the level of getting them to walk and pick things up and obey simple commands. Ransik's cyclobots could move almost as well as a human, and they were capable of some independent thought. The real problem is the software... You know, if they could download the programming somehow, they might not have to understand it... they could use modern hardware... maybe..." She trailed off thoughtfully. 

"So you do think it's possible someone in this time is doing it?" Wes asked. 

"Could be. You should talk to Dr. Zaskin. I know his team was studying them for a while. He must have a robotics expert on staff." 

"Yeah, we can go see him after lunch." Wes continued, to Eric, "Too bad neither you or Nightwing got a good look at that guy with the cyclobots the other night." 

"Yeah, too bad." 

"What was he like?" Gaby said, her face taking on a dreamy expression. 

"I didn't get a good look. Average size, light coloring, blond or white hair," Eric answered. 

"Not _him_. Nightwing." 

"Nightwing? He was okay." 

"Wow, I would have loved to meet him. Just to _see_ him... a real superhero..." 

Eric glared at her. "What are _we_, chopped liver? We're more super than he is." 

She widened her eyes innocently. "Was he cute? I mean, really, _really_ cute?" 

"How the hell should I know? God. Why do I put up with you?" 

"Last night you said you like the way I-" 

"Never mind," Eric said hastily. She laughed, and took his hand. He smiled, his face warming, and squeezed her fingers. Then he sighed as Jen turned back to Wes. 

"Wes, what's wrong with getting married in the winter?" 

* * *

He watched them, trying not to be seen at his table in the corner, away from the sunlight slanting in through the windows. Not that any of them would recognize him, anyway, now that he'd made himself look normal. He finished his lunch, alone as usual, tasting only the bitterness of envy and resentment. And why not resent them? Big heroes. Big shots. They didn't deserve any of it. 

Waiting for the check, he put on his sunglasses, and could watch them more closely. The women with them -- both brunette, one tall, one petite. Both pretty. His eyes fastened on the shorter one. Gabriella. Gaby. He had noticed her at Bio-Lab, had watched her, and thought about her. Pretty _and_ smart. He would have asked her out, as soon as he got up the nerve, but then she started going out with _him_. Eric Myers. Big muscles and a handsome face, that's all women cared about. The guy didn't even graduate from high school, for Christ's sake. 

The other woman was probably the same way, shallow and selfish. Wes Collins was good-looking, and rich too, that's all she wanted. No pretty girls were ever interested in _him_ -- and he was miles smarter than Eric, or Wes, or most of the guys on Earth, for that matter. All anyone cared about was the surface, and his surface had never gotten him what he deserved. 

But he'd show them. He was smart enough to make himself powerful and glamorous. He'd end up getting the girl. Again he focused on Gaby for a moment, before he got up and went to the cashier. 

She glanced up at him, and then took a closer look. "Norman?" she asked, and grinned. "You've done something to your hair." 

He stared at her, embarrassed and alarmed. He'd thought no one here would have noticed him before, thought no one would recognize him now, thought he'd matched his own original hair color, but it wasn't working... "I… yeah, I've just been in the sun a lot. My hair got lighter." 

"You look like you've got a little sunburn, too." 

Stupid. As if he'd just 'got a little sunburn'. "Yeah. I went to the beach." 

"Well, you look nice." She smiled warmly. 

He glanced at her again, really seeing her ordinary face and dirty-blonde hair for the first time. Not worth looking at twice, no wonder he couldn't remember her name. "Thanks -- uh…" 

"Doris." If her feelings were hurt, it didn't show. She only smiled again and handed him his change. 

"Thanks, Doris. Bye." 

Another quick glance showed Gaby, Eric, Wes, and his girlfriend getting up to leave. He hurried out to the sidewalk and away. If Doris had recognized him, one of them might, too, although he really shouldn't worry. None of them had ever really noticed him before, none of them would care about seeing him now. There was no reason for anyone to connect him with the cyclobots, Eric had never gotten a good look at him… 

And maybe it wouldn't matter, anyway. Not after what he had planned for today. 

* * *

TBC... 


	2. The Battle of BioLab

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine. 

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references. 

Reviews are appreciated, please take a moment to leave one. 

The Time Tunnel

* * *

* * *

The Battle of Bio-Lab

* * *

They stopped inside the laboratory door and watched for a moment. It was a large lab, assorted scientists and engineers in white coats dotted around the room, most of them bent over benches littered with unfamiliar equipment. Dr. Michael Zaskin was in a far corner, looking intent on a conversation with a tallish young man with curly black hair and light-brown skin whom Eric recognized as a junior physicist who had been working there for about a year. 

"Come on, let's go," Gaby said impatiently behind him. "I have to get back to work." 

"So do I," Eric agreed. 

"I really should get back to the stationhouse," Jen said. 

"You're a police detective. We're detecting." Wes grinned and took her hand. "Come on, this won't take long." They started for Zaskin. 

Zaskin looked up as they approached, his face abstracted and slightly annoyed at the distraction, until he recognized them. "Eric!" he exclaimed. "Wes. Haven't seen you for a while." He shook hands, nodded to Gaby, then turned to Jen. "Nice to see you again too, Jen. How are the wedding plans coming?" 

"We're still... discussing," she said with a sidelong look at Wes. 

"When's it going to be?" 

"That's one of the things we're discussing," Wes said. "Anyway, we're here about something else." 

"Had a feeling this wasn't a social call. Go on." 

"You studied the cyclobots, didn't you? The ones we and the Guardians trashed a couple of years ago?" 

"My team did, yes. We designed the Guardians' blasters from theirs." 

"Did you ever look into building them yourselves?" 

"Building our own cyclobots? Not seriously. We could have built the bodies, but the programming was way beyond anything we could do. And then your father told me to drop the research." 

"I understand." Eric glanced at Wes. Technologies from Jen's time, two hundred years in the future, including the cyclobots, were too dangerous to be introduced into the present, before they were supposed to be invented. Wes, with Eric's help, had been able to persuade Alan Collins to stop Bio-Lab's research into them. 

"I heard some of the cyclobot parts we had in storage were stolen," Zaskin went on. 

"Yeah. We thought someone might have used those parts to make new ones," Eric said. 

"It wasn't my people. I don't even have a robotics expert." 

"Didn't you have one to study the cyclobots?" Gaby asked. 

"No, at that point we were researching ways to fight the mutants, like the blasters, and trying to analyze the Quantum morpher. We did very little with the cyclobots themselves." 

"Well," Eric said, "someone's been building them. I ran into a bunch of them last night. Similar to the originals, but kind of crude looking. But they fought just as well." 

"Heard about that too." 

"Too bad whoever it was took his broken cyclobots with him," Wes added. "I would have liked for you to take a look at them." 

"Yes. And the fact that he went to the trouble of taking them may mean he was afraid we could find out something from them." 

"Or just that he needs the parts..." 

The young man who had been talking to Zaskin had turned away and back to his work. Now he faced them again and cleared his throat. "Excuse me, but maybe I could help." 

"Oh, sorry," Zaskin said. "You know Wes, Eric, and Gaby, don't you? And this is Jen Scotts, Wes's fiancée..." 

"We've met. Hi, Jen." 

"Hello, Rick." She smiled at Wes's inquiring look. "We met a few times at the stationhouse. Rick is Lieutenant Quinn's son." 

"Really? I didn't know. Small world." Eric saw Wes taking a closer look. He had already known about Rick's relationship to Jen's commanding officer in the Silver Hills Police Department, and knew Wes was looking for a resemblance. 

"Isn't it?" Rick said. "I'm working for your father, and your fiancée is working for mine." He grinned. "Put in a good word for me, and I'll put one in for you." 

"Hmm. What were you saying about the cyclobots?" 

"I was interested, so I took a look at them. Fascinating, the computer technology in those things is amazing. I'd love to get my hands on one that's still in working condition." 

"Do you think you could have built a new one? Or do you know anyone else who could have?" 

"Well, that's what I was going to say. I might be able to, given a few years to study them. But there's someone who used to work here who took a big interest..." 

"Hold on." Eric raised a hand to the small headset he usually wore while on duty. He listened, brows creasing at what he heard, then glanced sharply up at Wes. 

"What is it?" Wes asked, trying to get his own headset into position. 

"We're being attacked," Eric said, disbelief struggling with alarm, a sudden sense of déjà vu shaking him. "By cyclobots. They're _here_, in this building." 

"_Here_? Cyclobots?" Wes stared. 

"Let's go!" Jen was already running for the doorway. 

* * *

Jen stopped abruptly as she came in view of the main building lobby, hardly noticing Wes and Eric skidding to a stop beside her. They were cyclobots, all right. Dozens of them, maybe hundreds. They seemed to fill the room, shoving the people aside, knocking over furniture. The sounds of destruction filled the air, crashes, running feet, screams. 

They seemed to be simply destroying everything they could, more and more of them pouring in. She saw a human figure run in with a group of them, a man, in black clothing, wearing a mask and knit cap. Then, as one, they turned, and began to run. Heading straight in her direction. 

She raised her morpher, pressing the triggering button, hearing Eric's voice shout. When the sparkling light of transformation died away, she was in her pink and white Ranger suit. Wes stood on one side in red and white, Eric on the other in red and black. They had time to exchange a glance and a nod before the flood of robots was upon them. 

Jen ducked under a fist and punched back, rocking the robot off balance. Pivoting on one hip, she side-kicked another in the ribs -- or the robot equivalent -- then braced one hand on its shoulder and vaulted over it, feet plowing into a third. As she landed, metal arms grabbed her around the middle and lifted her. She clutched at them, kicking and struggling. 

Wes and Eric were also surrounded and in trouble. She saw Wes drop to the floor to kick a cyclobot's legs from under it, and roll out of the way just in time to avoid being crushed by the falling body. Rolling quickly to his feet, he backhanded a fist into a robot neck, his foot coming up at the same time to thrust another away. A cyclobot grabbed his arm, and he yanked at it, and then twisted to throw it over his hip. 

A few feet away, Eric was fighting in his distinctively acrobatic style. She saw him ramming a fist into a cyclobot, doubling it over, then using its back as a support, bracing himself on one arm while leaping up into a flip that ended with him between two robots, one foot kicking each of them back. Eric landed as two of them rushed him, driving him into the wall, back first. 

"Jen!" she heard Wes call. As he ran toward her she kicked back at the cyclobot holding her, twisted, and slammed an elbow into its head. It collapsed, with her sprawled on top. Wes pulled her back to her feet as two more came to the attack, grabbing at them. They both grabbed back, pulling on the cyclobots' arms, swinging them into each other with a crash. 

Another wave of attackers paused as they heard the sound of the Quantum Defender and saw a beam strike the cyclobots coming at them, leaving three of them sparking and falling to the floor. Eric pushed between them and opened fire again, trashing two more robots. With a moment's break, Jen and Wes summoned their own blasters and joined in. 

A round of blaster fire from all three of them drove their attackers off momentarily. Eric took a few steps after them. Jen followed, and glanced to one side to see the wrecked lobby rapidly emptying, the Silver Guardians on the scene now, shooting down the stragglers. The main mass of robots was moving through the corridor they had arrived from, toward the laboratory section of the building. 

"Come on!" Eric shouted. "We have to head them off!" 

"Keep them out of the labs and offices!" Wes cried. 

All three of them charged at the flow of cyclobots, shooting as many as they could before plunging into battle. Jen ducked as two of them struck at her, and kicked them back, knocking them into the robots behind them. Several went down in a heap. 

Ahead of her, Wes and Eric were fighting side by side, pushing and kicking cyclobots out of their way, too close now to use their blasters. Jen ran to catch up and turned to cover their backs. Then they were in the clear, ahead of the mass of robots, turning to confront them, a few more Guardians in the corridor moving up to join forces. Jen recognized Steve Miller, Wes and Eric's second in command, among them. The cyclobots stopped, seeming to hesitate. Through their packed bodies, Jen caught a glimpse of the same masked man she had seen before, surrounded by a circle of robots, like bodyguards. 

"They're going for the main lab!" Eric said. 

"Jen, go on. Get those people out of there! We'll hold them off!" Wes took Jen's arm, and pushed her in the direction of the lab. 

Maybe he was only trying to get her away from the action, to protect her... but those scientists would have no protection, and no way out, if the cyclobots got to them. And it was probably just a matter of time, there were so _many_ of them... 

She turned and ran for the lab, bursting in to find the scientists huddled in a group at the far end, looking terrified. She stopped and looked around frantically, spotting a fire exit on one side of the room. 

"Come on! You've got to get out of here!" She ran to the exit and opened the door with one quick shove. In a moment people in lab coats were running past her. A quick glance showed her Dr. Zaskin, Gaby, and Rick still on the other side of the room. 

At that moment the door banged open again. Silver Guardians backed in, pouring a steady stream of blaster fire at the cyclobots visible behind them. Wes and Eric appeared, crouching in the doorway, also firing at the robotic attackers. There were screams from the people still inside, and a renewed rush for the exit. Jen started for the far side, seeing Rick apparently trying to lift a large piece of equipment, Dr. Zaskin struggling with him, trying to drag him away, and Gaby shouting at both of them, backing away as they lurched toward her and stumbling over an overturned lab stool. 

Jen almost fell over her, grabbed her arm and yanked her to her feet. "Come on!" she shouted. But it was already too late. She saw the Guardians and Wes and Eric fall back from the doorway toward the exit and take defensive positions behind benches and equipment. The room filled with the sizzle of energy beams. Cyclobots poured in, were shot, fell, and were replaced by others. 

Zaskin and Gaby knelt behind a workbench, while Jen opened fire beside them. With a glance behind her, Jen saw Rick fiddling with the machine he had been trying to take. She shouted at him, but then the cyclobots were almost there, attacking, only a few feet away. 

She saw the masked man again, his lips lifting in a smile. He took a few steps right at them, and pointed. "Get her!" he said. The robots surged forward. 

Jen took aim. Her blaster was losing power, she could tell that the beam was weaker, and that meant her morpher was feeling the power drain. If she demorphed, they would be helpless, and a mass of cyclobots separated them from the Guardians, and from Wes and Eric. But there was no choice. Bracing herself, she opened fire again. 

"Get closer!" She heard Rick's voice as she backed towards him. They crowded together. Out of the corner of her eye she saw him reach for his machine, and flip a switch. And then it happened. A swirl of black and violet unfolded from the air, pinwheeling around them. She looked up, distracted, and it dropped over them, suddenly enclosing them like a moving, shifting wall. She felt energy tingle through her, running over her skin like static. Everything shifted -- blurred -- warped -- _changed_. A sudden burst of brilliant light forced her to close her eyes. 

When she opened them, Gaby, Zaskin, and Rick were still around her, all still in the same positions, now looking shaken and dazed. But the cyclobots were gone. The lab was gone. The _building_ was gone. And in its place... 

"Holy shit," she murmured uncharacteristically. 

* * *

"We can't hold them for long, Wes!" Eric shouted as Jen ran toward the lab. It was true. They just kept coming. He saw the man again, obviously controlling them, his face and hair covered now but almost certainly the same man as the other night. 

And another scene intruded on his thoughts, from two years ago, a scene nightmarishly similar to this one. Cyclobots overrunning Bio-Lab, attacking its people, destroying its property. Ransik had been controlling them, then. Eric and his Guardians had fought them, and failed to stop them before Alan Collins and Michael Zaskin had been injured, along with several others. Just as they were failing now... 

In rage and frustration, he aimed at the masked man, but couldn't get a clear shot. He ran forward, exchanging a series of punches with the cyclobots he ran into. As they charged him, he leaped, a hand on a metal shoulder swinging him up to fly feet first into the ones behind. Landing lightly, he bent and tackled another, knocking it back and taking down the one behind it. Straightening, he took aim. 

The man shrank back and ducked. "Get him!" he shouted. Eric fired, but a cyclobot moved to intercept the beam. Even as sparks shot from it and it jerked to the floor, three more rushed at Eric, lifting him and carrying him back. He fell, the three of them on top of him. 

He struggled, bringing his feet up and thrusting one off, twisting to slam another's head into the floor with his elbow. The third seemed to fly backwards off him, falling into its companions, and he saw Wes had come to his rescue. 

"Come on!" Wes pulled him up and helped him retreat. After a few steps they both turned to open fire again. A few more steps back took them to where several Guardians had formed a line across the hallway. They stumbled through, and then took up positions behind the line of kneeling men, all of them pouring energy into the invaders. 

"I think we're beating them, Eric!" Wes cried. 

There seemed to be no more new cyclobots appearing. But that didn't help the immediate situation. Unlike living opponents, the robots didn't care how many of them were destroyed. They felt no fear, just kept coming, stepping and jumping over the 'bodies' of their comrades. 

"There's still too many! Fall back!" Eric ordered. They beat a disorderly retreat down the corridor, stopping every few yards to pour energy blasts into the oncoming mob of cyclobots. Then they were at the doors of the main laboratory, and being forced through. They took a stand as long as they could, retreating slowly toward the exit. 

A glance showed Eric the last of the scientists escaping through the fire exit. But not _quite_ the last. He saw Michael Zaskin and Rick against the opposite wall, appearing to be struggling over a piece of machinery. Jen was running to them. His heart leaped with a jolt as he saw her stop and help Gaby to her feet. 

"Steve! Get them out of here!" he shouted at Miller, who looked, and started to work his way in their direction. Then the cyclobots were inside, and he had no more time to think, only to blast away at them, and hope the energy in his morpher would last. He was driven back across the room, closer to the exit, seeing Wes not far away. 

The masked man was in the room, still encircled by his cyclobot bodyguards. Eric blasted the cyclobots between them and started for him, only to be tackled by more. He saw the man point at Gaby, Zaskin, Rick, and Jen, and shout, "Get her!" He saw Rick fumble with the machine he was still clutching. Then he saw something that stopped him in his tracks. 

The unmistakable swirl of a timehole opened over the small group, whirling around them in a cone of black and violet for a moment. Then it seemed to dissolve in a burst of radiant light. The four people were gone. 

"Gaby!" he cried, hearing Wes shout Jen's name at the same moment. The room seemed to freeze, everyone, even the cyclobots, standing for a moment, staring. 

"What... what..." It was the masked man. He backed up, drawing a blaster and holding it indecisively, the cyclobots pulling back after him. 

"What did you do to them?" Eric shouted, his voice shaking with rage and fear. He started for the spot where they had disappeared, Wes right behind him. 

"What happened?" Wes cried. 

"How the hell should I know?" 

"It was this thing!" The machine Rick had been trying to pick up was about the size and shape of a large coffeemaker, studded with dials and knobs. Wes reached for it. 

"Wes..." He heard a hum vibrate from the device. Another black and violet whirlpool appeared above them, opening, swirling down around them. Before they could move, it was swallowing them into darkness, sending electricity tingling over him. He shielded his face with his arms as a burst of brilliant light left him blinking, then faded into bright sunlight and tall trees. He looked around, stunned. 

The lab was gone. Everyone else except Wes was gone. The building, Bio-Lab... Silver Hills itself was gone. 

"Eric?" He heard Wes's voice beside him, cracking with shock. "What happened? Where are we?" 

"Shit," Eric said softly. "This looks familiar..." 

* * *

TBC... 


	3. Old Times

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine.

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references.

Reviews are appreciated, please take a moment to leave one.

The Time Tunnel

* * *

Old Times

* * *

_"In an attack reminiscent of the mutant attacks over two years ago, Bio-Lab is being overrun by robots. The Silver Guardians seem to be fighting a losing battle so far..."_

Dick stared at the car radio, heart speeding as he wondered briefly if he was hearing things. They were back. Those robots... he had a momentary vivid memory of those powerful metal hands reaching for him.

They were attacking at Bio-Lab, innocent people were in danger. The Rangers would be there -- probably. But even they might need help. He turned the car as soon as he could and sped in that direction.

* * *

Norman stared numbly again as the two Rangers disappeared in a second whirl of color and darkness. For a moment the room was quiet. The remaining Guardians withdrew in a group and headed for the exit. At the doorway they stopped and opened fire again.

"Stop them! Get what we came for! And get _that_ thing too!" he ordered, pointing to the machine Rick had been fooling with. A group of cyclobots charged the Guardians, driving them out of the room, then scattered, collecting parts and equipment from the benches. Another took the strange machine, lifting it and carrying it toward the main door.

In the momentary calm, Norman advanced to the first computer terminal he found that was still working. Quickly he inserted a diskette, made a few mouse clicks, pulled it out again, and then turned away. "Let's go!" he shouted.

The retreat was faster and easier than the invasion had been. The Rangers were gone, and the Guardians were in no shape to put up more than a token resistance. In seconds they were outside, starting to pile into the van that had brought him.

Norman paused, just outside the building, to cast a look back. He had showed them... No one there had appreciated him, but now... too bad he had to hide his identity. But he had done what he came to do -- most of it. He had wanted to take _her_, too... For a moment he felt a twinge of discomfort. Six people, just gone, including her -- because of him... But what was done, was done. It wasn't his fault, not really.

"Put the stuff in the van," he said to his cyclobots. The one holding the mystery machine trotted away obediently. He took one more look back and turned to enter the vehicle.

"Going somewhere?" The voice was coming from above him. Startled, he looked up to see a costumed figure, a man a little over average height, in a black and midnight blue outfit, standing on the roof of his van. He stared in astonishment.

"Batman?" he gasped.

"Nightwing! Just for that, I'll have to kick your butt."

With that, he was leaping down, straight at him. With a yelp of alarm, Norman fell back a few steps, letting the cyclobots rush at his attacker. He landed, knocking a couple of robots down, and fought back skillfully.

Nightwing kicked one cyclobot and then another in the middle, actually driving them back for a moment. Then he ducked and wove between two of them, letting them trip each other up. Avoiding another metal arm, he dropped low to kick his attacker in the knee, slammed an elbow into another, grunted in pain as flesh impacted metal, then dived to brace himself on the other arm and kick the cyclobot down.

Norman backed away, fumbling for his blaster, saw a sudden flash of motion and looked up to find Nightwing somersaulting over the robot's heads, landing on a couple of metal shoulders, then leaping gracefully to the ground right in front of him.

"Are you my buddy from the other night?" he asked, snatching at Norman's mask.

"Get away from me!"

But it was too late, the gloved fingers caught his cap and yanked it off. "You're not Blondie? Or have you done something to your hair?"

The next instant a fist was swinging at him. It hit, startling him more than hurting him. But it knocked his mask off. Nightwing grinned. Norman yelled in anger and stepped back, stumbled and fell, landing hard on the pavement, the blaster sliding out of his grip. He scrambled backwards and reached for it.

Even as Nightwing came after him, kicking the weapon out of his hand again, three cyclobots charged him, one of them getting a grip around his ribs. He cried out as it began to squeeze and struggled in vain to free himself.

Norman got to his feet, panic surging inside him. It was all going wrong, at the last minute... He tried to cover his face, looked for his blaster, but his way was blocked by the cyclobots struggling with Nightwing. He spotted his cap and tried to reach it, stopping abruptly as a blast beam struck the ground in front of him.

A group of Silver Guardians was running out of the building, already starting to fire at him and his cyclobots. Police cars were arriving with sirens screaming, men piling out with guns drawn. He snatched up his mask, left the blaster and the cap, made his way to the van and climbed inside, sliding behind the wheel. It was past time to be gone.

* * *

"Holy shit..." Jen murmured.

"What the hell is going on?" she heard Gaby say, her voice almost squeaking in fear and astonishment.

The lab was gone. The building was gone. Bio-Lab was gone. The four of them were alone in a forest of strange looking fern-like bushes and pine trees. There was no sign of civilization. They all stared around for a few moments, too stunned to speak. Shakily, Jen raised her morpher and powered down. Without the suit, she noticed that it was warm, and humid, and that she could smell decaying plant life and something unidentifiable that made her nose itch.

"Is everyone okay?" she asked.

"I think so," Zaskin said. "What _was_ that? It felt like -- being electrocuted."

"Oh, my God. It worked," she heard Rick say faintly.

"It worked? What worked? Did you do this?"

"Yeah..." He grinned, took a deep breath, and laughed. "It actually worked!"

Jen grabbed his lab coat by the collar. "_What_ worked? Where are we?"

"I..." He laughed again. "We might be in the same place. I don't know. The right question is; _when_ are we?"

"What?" She let go and backed up a step, firmly getting a grip on herself. "All right, Rick, _when_ are we?"

"I don't know!" He grinned. "Don't know exactly. A few million years ago, I think."

"Earlier that that," Zaskin commented. "Look at these plants. Horsetails, primitive cycads, early angiosperms, no sign of grass... This is at least fifty million years ago."

"What?" Jen said again, rubbing her nose. "Millions of years?"

"Oh, my God," Gaby said softly.

Jen turned to see her several yards away, staring through the trees. Rick took several steps to her side, stopped, and stared also, muttering to himself. They all quickly joined her, and stood looking at the impossible.

There were five animals visible in a clearing beyond the clump of trees they were looking through. They were huge, around twenty feet long, and looked almost like a large rhinoceros. Almost. They had scaly, mottled, red-brown skin, two huge horns coming from the tops of their skulls, a giant bony plate growing from the backs of their heads, and a shorter horn above snouts which curved into beaks that reminded her bizarrely of a parrot.

"Triceratops?" Rick asked in a hushed tone.

"They're a little small, I think..." Zaskin said. "Could be Protoceratops... but they weren't this big... or -- or Torosaurus... Or something else... I'm not an expert. There were a lot of similar species."

"You mean... we're looking at dinosaurs? Real ones?" Gaby asked, her voice cracking again.

"There's nothing else they could be."

"Rick?" Jen asked, feeling her knees start to tremble. "How do we get back?"

"Well... the machine should bring us back automatically. Except... it should have done it by now. I guess that part didn't work."

"What? Why the hell did you do this if you can't get us back?"

"Those robots were attacking us! I got scared!"

She grabbed him again. "Rick, we can't stay here! We've got to get back!"

"I'm sorry! There's nothing I can do!"

"You mean we're stuck here?" Gaby exclaimed.

Zaskin had been staring raptly at the dinosaurs, ignoring their exchange. He started into the trees, saying, "I want to get a closer look."

"I don't think we should get any closer." Gaby grabbed Zaskin's arm, pulling him back.

"I agree. We need to find a safe place, and figure out where -- when -- we are, and how we're going to get back," Jen said with an angry look at Rick that was interrupted by a sneeze. _Or if we're going to get back,_ her mind added. But she didn't say it.

* * *

"This looks familiar..."

"What? What?" Wes looked around, stunned. As Eric had said, it looked familiar. Horrifyingly familiar.

"We're back."

"Back in the past again? No... can't be. Not dinosaurs again."

"Yeah? Then what's _that_?"

Wes turned, jumping back as he saw a -- _thing_ through the trees in the distance, an impossibly huge gray bulk, a long neck stretching up to a tiny head, lost in the treetops. As he watched, gulping in disbelief, the head turned and regarded them calmly, the jaws slowly grinding.

"Holy crap. We _are_ back... But _how_?"

"How the... how should I know? You're the one who touched that damn machine!"

"I did _not_ touch it! That -- that timehole just opened up all by itself!"

"All right." He could see Eric take a deep breath. "Either way, we're here."

"Do you think the same thing happened to Jen and the others?"

"Once again, I don't know. All I care about is finding them and getting home." Eric raised his arm and said, "Power down," transforming back into his navy-blue uniform.

Wes raised his morpher and demorphed also before replying, "Me too, Eric. My girl's gone, too."

"I know." Eric's face softened for a moment and he reached to touch Wes's arm. They exchanged a brief, half-hearted smile.

"If they're here..." Wes held up his morpher again and called into it. "Jen! Jen!" They waited, but there was no response. Eric tried to locate her with his morpher, also with no result. "I guess they're not here. Not in this time," Wes said, swallowing back his disappointment and renewed fear.

"We've got to get out of here," Eric said, his voice harsh. "Get back. Find out what happened to them."

"But how?" Wes could hear his own desperation.

"It was that machine Rick was using. It was a timehole, it must have been."

"But what was a timehole generator doing at Bio-Lab?"

"I could ask _you_ that. You sure you don't know anything about it?"

"Eric, I swear. You know as much as I do."

"Jesus. So we're stuck. Unless you have any ideas?"

"None," Wes said glumly.

"Do you think we're in the same time we were in before?"

Wes looked around. They were in a forest, a few of the trees looking familiar, many not. There was no grass, but many small fern-like plants grew on the ground. It was warm and humid, and he smelled damp earth and decay. He shrugged. "I'm no expert. Seems the same, but it was probably like this for millions of years."

"California was underwater for most of the time of the dinosaurs so we should be near the time they went extinct, but that doesn't fit the animals we saw." At Wes's surprised look, he added, "I looked up some stuff, after the last time." He looked around again. "This even looks like where we were before. Recognize that cliff?" He pointed up.

They were standing at the foot of a cliff face, rock and earth rising above them to what looked like a plateau. Wes looked in the opposite direction to see a mountain in the near distance. "This is where I fell," he said. "Up on that plateau is where the dinosaur chased us, and knocked me off." He glanced around nervously.

"I think the first thing we'd better do is find shelter. Then figure out what we're going to do."

"What if someone comes after us and can't find us?"

Eric was silent for a few seconds. "You're right. We should wait for a while. But we'll have to find someplace more protected when it gets dark. Maybe that cave where I hid from the Tyrannosaurus or whatever it was, the last time."

The last time... Wes fell silent as he found a seat on a fallen tree trunk and watched Eric pace restlessly. That had been just about two years ago, immediately after Eric had first become the Quantum Ranger. He had hitched a ride through a timehole, and Wes had jumped aboard the TF Eagle, Eric's flyer, with some crazy idea of helping... It hadn't quite worked out that way. They hadn't been friends then, in fact Eric had resented his presence, resented _him_. They had argued, and even had a physical fight. Then the timehole had opened again, Eric had taken off, and Wes had been terrified that he would be left behind. Would be trapped here, like they seemed to be now.

"That was a long time ago," he said, as much to himself as to Eric. Then he added, "At least we're on the same side now."

"We were always on the same side. I just didn't like you," Eric responded with his usual bluntness.

"Huh." Wes frowned at him and decided to ignore the remark. "We got home okay that time."

"Yeah. We were lucky." Eric was quiet, looking up into the sky, his face tight. "But I have the feeling there isn't going to be a convenient timehole to take us home this time."

Wes turned his eyes away, his heart sinking. He had the same feeling.

* * *

"I want my son back. And Eric, and the others... We'll take whatever help we can get."

Nightwing rubbed his sore ribs, wincing slightly. He watched the middle-aged man talking to him. Alan Collins, Wes's father, owner and CEO of Bio-Lab. He was upset, naturally enough, with his son missing.

He had been here once before, in the Silver Guardians' infirmary. Only the night before, he realized with surprise. He had been treated again today for some minor injuries. There were other people in other beds, Guardians who had been injured in the fight, those who hadn't been hurt seriously enough to go to the hospital.

Also in the room was a short, grim-faced man who had been introduced as Steve Miller, in command of the Guardians in Eric and Wes's absence. The two men standing nearby watching them were Silver Hills Police Lieutenant Quinn, his dark face pinched with anxiety, and Detective Jimmy Duran.

The Guardians, with the help of the police, had disposed of the cyclobots remaining after their master had escaped in his van, rescuing him from them in the process. The masked man had left his cap and blaster behind. Both were now in the custody of the police.

"You were here before. Teamed up with Wes, Eric, and Jen. You saw the man who was controlling those things, close up. We have to find him, make him tell us what happened to Wes and the others."

"Don't know if I'd say we teamed up. I tried to help out. Last night it was dark, I never got much of a look at the guy. Today I just saw him for a second, but I think I'd recognize him. Whether it was the same man -- the one I saw the other night had very light hair. White, or close to it. When I pulled this guy's cap off, he had brown hair, but he was the same size, and he moved the same way -- I think he's the same guy."

"Good. You're the only witness we've got who's seen his face."

Nightwing looked up again at Collins, seeing his worry. "I'll do whatever I can," he answered. He turned to face Quinn and Duran. "If you find hairs on that cap, check for hair dye."

Quinn nodded. "We know our jobs," he said.

"I'm sure you do. I have a question." He faced Collins again. "Do you have any robotics experts on staff? Anyone who would have the ability to build those robots?"

"None that I know of. Dr. Zaskin would know. But he's gone. We can find out from his people."

"Ask them about anyone who's left recently, too. For any reason." He paused to think. "I understand you had some parts from the first cyclobots stored, and they were stolen recently."

"Yes. Wes told me they thought these newer ones were based on that design."

"Sounds reasonable. We may be looking for someone good in robotics or computer science who worked here at the time you were studying those first cyclobots."

"Right. We'll find out." Collins nodded.

Nightwing stood up. "I'll need to see the lab they attacked. Get a list of what they took. See pictures of your staff and former employees who fit the description." He paused for a moment to think. "Knowledge is our best weapon here. We need to know exactly what happened, if we're going to get those people back. I want to interview witnesses, see any surveillance tapes you may have."

"The police will cooperate fully," Quinn said grimly.

"And so will the Guardians," Miller added.

"Good." He glanced at each person, briefly holding their eyes. "We may need to work fast. Let's get going."

* * *

TBC...


	4. Tooth and Claw

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine. 

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references. 

Reviews are appreciated, please take a moment to leave one. 

The Time Tunnel

* * *

* * *

Tooth and Claw

* * *

Nightwing followed the others as they picked their way through corridors and hallways marked with damage and littered with the debris of the pitched battle that had been waged here, fortunately destroyed cyclobots instead of bodies. After a few turns, they left the destruction behind, and soon entered a large, rather dark office. They found chairs as Collins took a seat behind the desk. 

"We have a tape from the surveillance camera in that lab," he announced. Miller moved to a small television and VCR which had been left set up, holding a videocassette. "I'll have to find the right place..." 

He inserted the tape and began to fast forward. They all watched as various people, most of them in lab coats, darted around the interior of a large laboratory in fast motion. Then it slowed to normal speed as four people Nightwing recognized walked in. 

"My son, Wes. The Red Ranger," Collins said softly. "Eric Myers, the other commander of the Silver Guardians, and the Quantum Ranger. Jen Scotts, my son's fiancée, a police detective -- Jimmy's partner -- and the Pink Ranger. Gabriella Butler -- Gaby -- our computer security manager and Eric's girlfriend." The four began to talk to a tall, slender man and, after a moment, a younger man who seemed to interrupt them. "Dr. Michael Zaskin, head of my science department. Rick Quinn, one of the junior scientific staff, and Lieutenant Quinn's son." 

As the tape ran on, they spoke for a while. Then Eric raised a hand to his ear. The others looked at him in apparent alarm. Wes, Eric, and Jen ran out. The scientists milled about, seeming frightened, for a few minutes. Gaby started out, then turned back, looking uncertain. 

Nightwing leaned forward as the tape showed the Guardians retreating into the room, the Rangers running in, the cyclobots attacking. The battle was fast and furious. He watched Rick doing something to a strange looking machine, watched as a whirl of lights and darkness seemed to materialize around the small group of four people, blotting them out of existence. Watched a second swirl appear and sweep over the two remaining Rangers. Watched as the mystery man and his cyclobots looted the laboratory and used one of the computer terminals. 

Nightwing exhaled as the tape ended, realizing he had been holding his breath. "What the hell _was_ that?" he demanded. He watched Collins and Miller exchange a glance, their expressions reluctant. "If you have any idea how they disappeared -- I can't help if you don't tell me what's going on," he added. 

"_That_ was a timehole," Collins said. "Or that's what it looked like." 

"A... timehole?" 

"Yes. Time travel." He sighed. "Jen is from the future. All the Ranger stuff is. So were the mutants who were here a couple of years ago." 

Nightwing stared at him for a moment. Time travel. It should be unbelievable. And yet -- he had just seen six people vanish into thin air. He had fought robots more sophisticated than anything he had ever heard of before. Add to that the mutants that had attacked Silver Hills -- the Ranger powers... It wasn't a complete surprise. 

"All right," he said. "I guess I suspected something like this. Power Rangers... the suits and the weapons, and Jen said something when I was here last night." He paused for a breath. "Just makes the situation more urgent. What was a timehole doing in your laboratory?" 

"I don't know. None of our scientists are working on time travel, that I know of. It looked like the machine was Rick's. And now he's gone." 

"Yeah." Nightwing sat forward, his thoughts returning to the immediate problem. "They're certainly the same robots Eric and I ran into. And seeing this… the whole thing strikes me even more as an inside job. That guy knew exactly where he was going, what he was after. Is there anyone you can think of..." 

"No. I have enemies, but no one I know of in Bio-Lab. No one who would want to do something like this." 

"We have to find out what he did to that computer, too." 

"Yes. Unfortunately, our computer security person is gone, too." His face tightened again. "I'll get our network people on it." 

"The first thing we have to do is try to get that machine back. Maybe it'll give us a way to find Eric and the others," Nightwing added. As he got up he looked again at Collins, seeing his face tight with tension. "Try not to worry. With all of us working together -- we'll find them if anyone can. Now, if someone can show me that lab..." 

"I will." Miller got up and led him out, into a corridor filled with people who stared curiously as they walked. In a few minutes they were outside the open doors of the large laboratory that Nightwing recognized from the tape, when his cell phone rang. 

"Excuse me..." He moved away from Miller, pulled the phone out of his glove cuff and glanced around before answering. "Yes." 

_"Dick?"_ Her voice held just a shade of anxiety, with relief in it too. 

"Hi. Hold on a minute." Another quick look around showed him a door leading outside. He headed away from the building, down a short flight of steps. There were still quite a few police and Guardians around, but he found a spot away from any of them. 

"Okay, Babs," he said when he felt safe from overhearing ears. 

_"Dick!"_ There was warmth in her tone now. _"Are you all right?"_

"Yeah. I guess you know what happened." 

_"Yes, I was worried. It's good to hear your voice."_

"Yours too." 

_"What was it?"_

"Another attack by those robots I told you about. And their leader. Eric, the two other Rangers, and three other people have disappeared." He paused, realizing he had already made a decision. "I'm going to stay on here. I have to help out, try to find them." 

_"You have to?"_ There was a protest in her voice. 

"Babs…" 

_"I know, you can't just walk away. It's in your nature." _He heard sharp disappointment in her tone, and concern. 

"Yours too." Unbidden, the image of Barbara in her Batgirl costume rose in his mind. He closed his eyes against it. She had been so confident, so quick, her body straight and strong… 

_"Those days are gone."_ There was only a fine tracery of sadness under her words. 

"No, they're not. You do as much as Oracle as Bruce and I do." Instinctively he glanced around. Protecting their secrets was such an ingrained habit, even though he knew their conversation was secure and encrypted end-to-end, he still felt uneasy mentioning any of their other identities. 

_"The woman behind the men, right?"_ She laughed lightly. 

"Something like that." He was relieved to hear her tone brighten. 

_"I wish I could come out there and really help you."_

"You could come if you want. I'd love to see you. But…" He knew she wouldn't come. It was hard for her to travel, and she wasn't really comfortable anywhere but at home. Guilt twinged at him. He had so little time to spend with her, and he had chosen to go on this vacation alone… 

_"But you wouldn't have time to be with me. And I'm more use to you here, as Oracle, if you need information."_

"Well, yeah." 

_"Dick…"_ He heard her hesitate. _"Any idea when you'll be home?"_

"'Fraid not. You know how it is." 

_"Yes, I know."_ Again that disappointment in her voice touched him. 

"Babs, baby, you know I'd be there tomorrow if I could. Believe me, I miss you. But I can't just leave when these people need me." 

_"I understand." _ She sounded resigned. _"Just let me know if I can help."_

"Of course. Look, I'd better go." 

_"Okay. Keep in touch."_

He lowered his voice. "I love you. See you soon." 

_"Not soon enough. And I love you too."_

* * *

Jen looked around at their makeshift refuge, wiping her nose for about the hundredth time. They had found a small cave under an overhang, not deep, but enough to shelter them from rain. The opening was high on a steep slope, forcing them to climb to get to it, but giving them some protection from large predatory animals. 

"Just incredible," Zaskin said again. She sighed in annoyance as he went on, talking with Rick and Gaby as they looked out over the forest. "Look up there!" 

"Are those pterodactyls?" Gaby asked. 

"Yeah!" Rick answered. "Look at the size of those things!" 

"Looks like Quetzalcoatlus," Zaskin said. "I'm sure we're in the late Cretaceous. Wonder if we'll see a Tyrannosaurus Rex? They lived at this time." 

"I hope not. At least not up close," Gaby muttered. 

"Of course there were a lot of other predatory species." 

"Wonderful." Gaby turned away from the cave entrance and walked inside. "Jen," she said, sitting down beside her. "I... do you think Eric and Wes are all right?" 

The question she had been trying not to worry about. "I think so." 

"There were so many of those cyclobots..." 

"I know." Jen was silent for a moment, biting her lips. "They're pretty tough. Both great fighters. We were beating the cyclobots. I'm sure they're okay." 

Gaby gave her a quick glance and then looked down at the dirt floor. "We're going to need more food, aren't we?" she went on after a pause. 

"I hope we won't be here long enough to have to worry about that." 

They had done some exploring while searching for shelter, and collected various nuts, seeds, a few figs, and even stolen some unguarded dinosaur eggs. It was enough for the night, at least. There was a small stream nearby, which would supply them with water. And they had picked up wood for a fire. All of this while trying to keep Zaskin and Rick from wandering off to look more closely at whatever caught their eye. 

"Do you think anyone will come after us?" Gaby asked, rather plaintively. 

Jen sighed. "I hope so." 

"But… we could be stuck here, couldn't we? Forever." 

She forced a smile. "Don't talk like that. In my time, they monitor the timestream. They'll be looking for interference, and they'll correct it. Find us, and bring us back." 

"If Rick invented that time machine himself, that wouldn't be interference, would it? And there wouldn't be anything to correct." 

Sometimes Gaby was too smart for her own good, Jen thought. "Time travel wasn't invented for another hundred years. Something's gone wrong, there's been some kind of interference, no matter what Rick says." She stood up. "And it's time to get some answers." 

A look at the cave mouth showed that the two men had disappeared. With a curse she walked to it and looked out. They were several yards away from the foot of the slope, Zaskin slowly approaching an animal, Rick right behind him. It was a dinosaur, about seven feet high, walking upright, with a heavy tail held out behind it, short arms, clawed hands and feet, and a billed, duck-like head. It was eating leaves from a tree, and watching Zaskin as he came closer. 

"What are they doing?" she hissed. 

"You know scientists," Gaby said, her voice low and tense. "They just can't resist." 

"Stay here." Jen scrambled down the slope as quietly as she could, edged closer and called in a low voice, "Dr. Zaskin. Rick. Just back up slowly." 

They glanced at her. Zaskin smiled and waved her back. "Don't worry!" he called in a low voice. "It's a duck-billed dinosaur. Not sure what species. Harmless." 

"With those claws? Don't count on it. Come on back." 

"I just want to get a closer look. The skin texture is…" He stopped talking as the creature suddenly turned. It took a few steps closer and raised its arms, spreading its claws. 

"Run!" Jen shouted. Zaskin backed away uncertainly. Rick started for him. Jen raised her morpher and pressed the trigger button. Light blazed around her for a moment, transforming her into the Pink Ranger, already running forward, and just in time. The dinosaur was charging, no longer looking even remotely harmless, claws reaching. 

Zaskin ran, and Rick darted in, waving his arms. He distracted the animal, then gasped and ran for his own life as it came after him. Jen summoned her blaster and fired at it just as it swiped at him, catching the sleeve of his lab coat. The shot struck, the dinosaur stopped and whirled on her, amazingly fast. 

It came at her. Jen jumped into the air in mid-run and landed a kick to its chest, but it was far heavier than a human and was barely staggered. She landed on her feet, backed away, and fired at it again. The creature roared in pain, swung a clawed hand at her, and then turned and fled. In an instant it was gone. 

"Damn!" Jen sagged with reaction, taking a few moments before inspecting herself. She and her suit were uninjured. "Are you okay?" she called to Rick. 

"Yeah, I think so." His voice was shaking. "Got my lab coat, but just missed me." 

Even Zaskin looked properly frightened. "I thought it was herbivorous. It was eating those plants," he said. 

"I _told_ you some of the duck-bills were omnivorous. Jen's right, all you had to do was look at those claws," Rick retorted. 

"I don't care how curious you guys are! And I don't care about dinosaur eating habits! From now on, we stay together, and we assume anything we see that's bigger than a mouse is potentially dangerous, and we stay away from it! Is that clear?" Jen said, loudly. 

"Yes, ma'am." They both nodded. 

* * *

"It was that way. Wasn't it?" 

Eric sighed. "I don't know. It was two years ago. We were running away from a forty-foot dinosaur. Sorry if I don't remember the directions!" 

"No reason to get mad." Wes sounded irritated. 

Eric knew he did too. They were both tired, hot, frustrated, worried about Jen and Gaby, afraid for themselves. After several hours of waiting, they had given up on immediate rescue and decided to find the cave where Eric had hidden from a Tyrannosaurus during their first visit to this time period. It had been a long climb up to the plateau where Eric thought it was, but luckily they had not encountered anything more dangerous than a dinosaur roughly the size of an elephant, covered with bony plates and spikes, calmly munching on ferns. 

"Sorry," he muttered. "I think that's the right way. Let's go." 

They walked again, trudging through trees and ferns, sweating in the humid warmth. Luckily the sun was beginning to set. He wondered if it would get cold at night. Probably not, with all this vegetation to hold the heat… At least they had seen food along the way, nuts, seeds, and some fruit. Not exactly a feast, but it would keep them alive, if necessary. 

"Eric…" Wes's hand was on his arm, holding him back. 

"I see it." There was a dinosaur in their path, standing among the trees, so still it was almost invisible. It was relatively small, only maybe five feet tall, but probably weighed as much as a man. It was a pale yellow-brown with irregular dark spots, upright on two powerful legs, and had arms ending with dangerous-looking clawed fingers. Even larger claws were on its toes. The head was mostly long, large jaws, with very sharp-looking teeth visible as it turned its head to the side and opened its mouth slightly, watching them with alert and predatory eyes. 

"I think it's time to morph," Wes said softly. 

"I think you're right." 

They both raised their arms. Just as the dinosaur started for them with startling speed, Wes pressed the button and Eric shouted. The light of transformation flashed, stopping the beast, but only for a moment. It hesitated when it reached them, circling them cautiously. Eric already had his blaster out. 

"Don't kill it." 

"I don't intend to. Just discourage it a little, if it tries to take a bite." 

The creature stopped, cocking its head, its motions reminding Eric disturbingly of his pet birds. Then it raised its nose and _called_, a strange, trilling whistle. It took a few more steps and called again. 

"What's it doing?" Wes asked. 

"Don't know. But I don't like it." 

"Uh-oh. I think it was calling its friends." 

Suddenly he saw them, everywhere, coming out of the trees with those quick bird-like steps. They were surrounded. He saw Wes summon his own blaster. And then the attack began. 

In a nightmarish way, it was like being attacked by the cyclobots again. There were dozens of them, and they seemed fearless. He and Wes quickly ran up the power settings for their blasters; the dinosaurs were very resistant, what would kill a man barely stunned them. 

And they were getting closer, Eric staggered as a clawed arm swung, hooking his shoulder, knocking him off balance. Another dinosaur caught him, trying to pierce through the suit with its claws, then biting him, teeth grating on his helmet. With a cry of disgust and primal fear, he struck out, a kick catching it in the neck. The next instant he was falling to the ground. Feet armed with huge, curved claws came at him. 

Rolling to his back, he fired upwards, aiming as best he could. When they fell back he struggled to his feet. Wes was a few feet away, thrusting a fist at a reptilian head. But they were fast, it dodged and came at him again. He dropped it with a blast at short range. 

Eric tried to join him, blasting a path in his direction, seeing Wes turn to face him. But more of the creatures cut him off, clawed fingers swiped, knocking him back, one of them kicked at his legs, the suit protecting him from the claws, but he lost his balance and fell, trying to shield himself as they struck again and again, darting in and then away when he fired at them. 

Then jaws grabbed him, lifting him up, and he looked around and saw that the dinosaur that had him was _big_, bigger than any of the others, and strong; he could feel that the suit was weakening, could feel the crushing pressure. Instinctively he hit at the dinosaur's head with the Defender, unable to aim as it shook him like a rag doll. 

A beam struck the creature's head, sparking over it. Wes, a glance told him. It squealed and shook him harder. Another beam, but this time it missed and hit _him_, sending a sharp jolt of pain through him. A third shot struck home, the dinosaur screamed, tossed its head, and sent him flying an impossible distance, to end crashing into a tree. 

He tumbled to the ground, felt the sickening electric-shock sensation as he demorphed back into his uniform, and lay there helpless, unable to move. Dimly he heard Wes shout his name, heard more blaster shots. Shapes were moving, as he managed to raise his head, another monster, coming after him… 

Claws ripped across his chest, pulling an involuntary cry of pain from his throat. He threw up an arm, and then screamed as jaws closed on it, and teeth sank in. He was pulled up, then dropped, and someone was there, in front of him, whipping a tree branch into the dinosaur's head, driving it back for a moment as hands grabbed him from behind, pulling him away. And then Wes was running toward them, blaster blazing, stunning the animal, turning to fire at the pack following him, slowing them just enough. 

He was being lifted again, his arms pulled over two sets of shoulders, arms supporting him as they half-carried, half-dragged him away. The world went dark as they stumbled into a small cave, then through an opening into a larger space, dimly lit by sunlight filtering through an unseen opening, the only sound now their footsteps and ragged breathing. 

As they set him down, he saw Wes following, saw him stop, bend with his hands braced on his knees, his trembling visible even through the suit. As his eyes adjusted he got his first clear look at his rescuers. Two men, one tall, in his mid thirties, the other average height and five or ten years younger, both dark-haired. 

"We should be safe here. I don't think they'll come into the cave," the taller man said. 

"Who… who the hell are you?" Eric gasped. 

"My name's Tony Newman," the shorter one said. "This is Doug Phillips. Did you come here to help us?" 

* * *

TBC... 


	5. Tic Toc

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine.

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references.

I wish I could take credit for Tony and Doug's story, but it's the second 'cross' in this crossover. 'The Time Tunnel' was a TV series that ran for one season in 1966 (taking place in 1968). Most of you have probably never heard of it, but not to worry, all will be explained.

Reviews are appreciated, please take a moment to leave one.

The Time Tunnel

* * *

Tic-Toc

* * *

Dick frowned at the television. He was having a late room-service dinner in his room at the hotel. It was a quiet meal, he hardly noticed what he was eating as he watched the news coverage of today's attack on Bio-Lab.

_'While these cyclobots were obviously different from those of two years ago, there were marked similarities.'_ The screen showed two images, side by side, one of a robot identical to the ones they had fought earlier, the other of a similar robot, but with a smooth surface almost like tight metallic clothing. _'In particular, the fact that they overran Bio-Lab, destroying everything they found, in a nightmarish repeat of an earlier attack.' _Now he saw film of the inside of a demolished Bio-Lab, then a view from outside, stretchers being carried to waiting ambulances, demoralized-looking Guardians walking around.

_'This time, police and Silver Guardians had a little extra help.' _The scene shifted again, showing him -- in his Nightwing costume -- leaving the building and disappearing into the darkness. The camera followed him briefly before the anchorperson's face reappeared on the screen. _'While we don't know what the former Boy Wonder was doing in Silver Hills-'_

"Former Boy -- shit!" Dick muttered, glaring at the television.

_'-We're sure everyone here is grateful for his help. Especially Alan Collins, head of Bio-Lab, and Lieutenant Robert Quinn, both of whose sons are missing, along with Eric Myers, better known as the Quantum Ranger, two more of Bio-Lab's staff, and a police detective who is engaged to Wesley Collins.'_ Pictures of the six missing people were briefly displayed.

_'We will keep you informed of further developments in this breaking story.'_

Dick picked up the remote and turned down the sound as the broadcast moved on to other news. Then he frowned again as his cell phone rang.

_"Dick?"_

"Bruce. What's up?"

_"I should ask you that. Are you all right?"_

"I guess you've been watching the news."

_"Yes. You were hurt again."_

"Not really. Just knocked around a little."

There was a pause, while Dick could almost hear Bruce thinking, wondering how to offer help without making him angry... _"Anything I can do to help?"_

"No. I'm fine."

_"Six people are gone? Including the Rangers?"_

"Yep." There was another silence. Dick reflected, not for the first time, on how well they knew each other, so well that he could almost read Bruce's mind. "You think I'm in over my head, don't you?"

_"Dick, I have the utmost confidence in you. But this sounds bad... if even the Rangers couldn't defend themselves. Just... be careful. Ask for help if you need it."_

He was standing at the window, becoming aware of the view as he listened. Downtown Silver Hills lay before him, city lights sparkling in the night. Not as big as Gotham, not as dirty, not as dangerous, not as beautiful. For the first time in months, a wave of homesickness washed over him. Gotham -- the mansion, Bruce, Alfred, even the Batcave, cold and dark as it was.

He could remember how it had felt to walk away from all of it, years ago. After he had been badly wounded in a fight, and Bruce had suddenly and illogically decided it was too dangerous for him to continue as Robin. Had tried to force him to give it up. When Dick had refused, Bruce had ended their partnership with cold finality, and in an equally cold rage had made it clear he was no longer welcome in the home he had thought was his as much as Bruce's.

Dick had left without any goodbyes, and spent the next two years wandering aimlessly. Eventually he _had_ stopped being Robin, by becoming Nightwing instead. Eventually, he and Batman had worked as a team again. They had patched their relationship back together. But the patches still showed.

Thinking back on it now -- after what had happened to Barbara -- he wondered if he would have done the same, used any means possible to stop her from being Batgirl, to keep her out of danger. She was Oracle now, with a new role to play, her new weapons were computers and technology. She seemed almost content with her fate. But if there had been any chance of preventing the attack that had crippled her -- even at the expense of the friendship which had later deepened into love -- yes, he would have done it in a heartbeat.

With a sigh, he turned away from the window. No point in remembering. No point in still being angry. Not when a part of him had begun to understand.

"I will, Bruce," he said. "And... thanks."

* * *

Wes demorphed, obviously startling the two strangers. He sent another nervous glance at the cave entrance before turning to face them. Now that he took a closer look, he saw that they were both unshaven, and thin, and their clothing was worn and ripped in places.

"I'm Wes Collins," he said. "This is Eric Myers. And thanks for your help out there."

They both stared for a few more seconds. Then the taller one -- Doug -- spoke up. "How did you do that? What was that -- uniform? What _are_ you two?"

"We're Power Rangers. The suits are sort of combat equipment. These morphers change us in and out of them…"

"Amazing. We weren't sure you were even human, until you -- changed." He paused for a moment. "Did you come here to find us? To take us home?"

"Sorry, no. I guess that means you don't have a way out of here, either."

"No." Both of their faces fell. "You mean you're stranded here, too?"

"Yeah." Wes took a few steps to kneel at Eric's side. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"What the hell do you think?" He blew a breath out and glanced up at Wes. "Sorry. I'll be fine." But blood was trickling between his fingers, where a hand clutched his chest, and running down his bitten arm.

"You're bleeding."

"I said I'm okay."

"Right." Wes glanced up at Tony and Doug again. "First of all, we should do something about those wounds."

He felt his stomach twist queasily as they helped Eric remove his jacket and shirt, revealing a set of three deep, jagged gashes across his chest and the punctures left by those long teeth in his arm. Eric inspected himself without comment, his lips thinning slightly. The smaller man, Tony, brought water from the stream they could hear nearby in a cup made of a hollowed-out piece of wood. A few minutes -- and several curses from Eric -- later, they had rinsed off as much dirt as they could and bandaged the wounds with strips torn from his and Wes's undershirts.

"I guess that's the best we can do," Tony said, his tone unhappy.

"I know," Eric said. "Can't exactly run out to the drugstore for bandages and antiseptic." His eyes met Wes's. Stranded in this time, without any medical supplies, wounds like that were likely to become infected, and there was nothing they could do about it if they did. Wes looked away.

"You're obviously Americans, like us. What year are you from?" Tony asked.

Wes sighed. "2003. You?"

"1968. You're from -- thirty-five years in our future."

"How did you get here?" Doug asked as he sat on the stone cave floor.

"We really don't know," Wes said. "It was some kind of accident. Someone apparently built a time machine in the laboratory where we work."

"Are you scientists?"

Wes smiled, and Eric laughed and then winced. "No. We're part of the security force that protects the scientists. We were trying to do our jobs today, when it happened. We were under attack, by robots…" He briefly gave them a slightly edited account of their latest trip through time. "We waited to see if anyone would come get us, but nothing happened. Then we decided to search for shelter. And then we ran into those dinosaurs."

"We've seen them before," Doug said. "That pack's been around for a few days. We've been afraid to go out. Then we heard you fighting them. Heard sounds that obviously weren't animals."

"Thought you were here for us," Tony added with a brief smile.

"Sorry," Wes said again.

"And now, it's your turn," Eric said, his voice sharp. "How did _you_ get here? How do we know you don't have something to do with stranding us here in friggin' Jurassic Park?"

"We didn't ask to be stuck here either," Tony retorted angrily. "And how are you so sure this is the Jurassic?"

Wes quickly hid a smile. "Don't mind Eric. How _did_ you get here?"

They exchanged a glance. "I suppose if you already have time travel, we can tell you. Most of it, anyway," Doug started.

* * *

"All right, Rick. Spill it." Jen sneezed again, and glared at the young man.

They were back in the cave, and everyone had calmed down after their narrow escape. With the help of Jen's Time Force survival training, they had even started a small fire. The light and warmth were welcome, as the last colors of sunset faded into a sinister darkness outside their little cave.

"You mean about the time machine?"

"Yes, I mean about the time machine. How did you build it? Where did you get the technology? And don't tell me you invented it all by yourself."

He smirked. "I _am_ a genius."

"Cut the bullshit. You're the reason we're here, and I want to know how and why."

The smile disappeared, replaced by a sheepish look. "No, I didn't invent it by myself. It's… kind of a long story."

"Then you'd better get started."

"I didn't mean any harm. I wanted to help. Fix a mistake that was made years ago." His face became gloomy. "Now I guess I made another one."

Jen softened her voice. "Just go on and tell us."

"Okay." Rick was silent, his face thoughtful, for a few seconds. Then he began to talk.

"It started almost forty years ago, in the sixties," he began. "The United States government began an investigation of time travel, as a military project. Very top secret. The best scientists in the country were working on it. They developed a theory, it led to a practical application…"

"Are you telling me the _government_ built a time machine?" Jen demanded.

"Yes. In 1968, the first working time machine -- that we know of -- was built and tested."

"Working? It actually worked?"

"Well, yes and no. Just let me tell it."

"Sorry. Go on." By now all of them were sitting quietly, fascinated.

"It was code-named Project Tic-Toc. As I said, top secret. It was located in Arizona, in the desert. Nothing much visible on the surface, most of it underground. A huge complex, all hidden, under the sand… Anyway, the first working time machine was completed in 1968. It looked like a big tunnel made of concentric metal rings, big enough for a person to walk into it. They called it the Time Tunnel.

"They had run only a few tests, sending objects and a couple of test animals back in time. All successful, as far as it went. The government wanted more. The project was over budget, there were complaints, they wanted to see results. They wanted a man sent back, and retrieved. And they were going to shut it down, if they didn't get what they wanted.

"There were three principle physicists working on the program. Doug Phillips, the project leader; Tony Newman, and Ann MacGregor. They had developed the Tunnel, put their whole lives into it for years. Tony especially didn't want to let it end. He was… impulsive, I guess. He decided to test it. On himself. Set up a transport in secret, started up the Tunnel, and walked inside… It worked, all right. The project crew located him a few hours later. He was in 1912, April 13th, and he was on board a ship. The Titanic."

* * *

Tony paused. "It was a stupid mistake. I hadn't stopped to think what kind of position I'd put the project in, if they couldn't get me back safely. Didn't think I'd land in so much trouble that they had to use the Tunnel to help me.

"I knew the Titanic would hit an iceberg the next day and sink. Tried to warn the captain, tried to tell the passengers, but they thought I was crazy. Locked me up. I was trapped in a room near the waterline, in the section that flooded first."

Doug took over the story. "Back in 1968, we could see everything that was happening on the Tunnel's viewscreen, but we realized we couldn't get him back. Couldn't get enough of an accurate lock on him to retrieve him. But we _could_ send someone else after him. There was only one thing to do. I had to help him. Keep him alive long enough for Ann and the others to resolve the problem, and retrieve both of us safely."

* * *

Rick went on, his voice the only sound besides the soft crackle of the fire.

"It didn't work that way. The transport went okay, Doug materialized on the Titanic, and he found Tony and freed him, but the Tunnel began to have technical problems, they couldn't get the retrieval sequence to work. The ship hit the iceberg and began to sink right on schedule. With nothing else to try, they shifted both of them in time, not knowing where -- and _when_ they would end up.

"Well, to make a long story short, that's how it went after that. Every effort to get them back just shifted them to a random new time and place. Doug and Tony were in Pearl Harbor when it was attacked… On Krakatoa when it exploded, in other wars and disasters… They always seemed to land in the middle of a crisis…"

Rick's voice had gotten softer. His face bent over his hands, loosely clasped between his knees. "They never brought Tony and Doug home. Never. They shifted them again and again, and then -- after the last shift -- they couldn't find them. They were just -- lost. After a year of trying, the project was shut down, the site was demolished, the scientists were reassigned, the ones who didn't quit. Tony and Doug were abandoned. And everything was hushed up. Forgotten. By almost everyone."

* * *

"It went on for months." Tony's voice was low. "Bouncing around from time to time, never knowing what was next, always barely escaping with our lives, seeing some of the greatest tragedies in history, and never being able to prevent them. Always hoping the next jump would bring us home. But it never did.

"And then -- we shifted times again, and found ourselves here. Long before humans even evolved. We waited. Weeks went by, then months. I think we've been here close to a year now. After a while we realized they weren't going to shift us again. They must have lost us, couldn't locate us this time. We don't even know if they're looking anymore."

Doug continued when Tony fell silent, bowing his head. "Ann wouldn't have given up, but the government may have shut us down. We lost hope. Just concentrated on staying alive from day to day. Trying to find food, trying to stay away from the predators, making cave drawings and hoping someone would find them someday and know we were here." He sighed, and smiled tremulously. "Thought we'd never see another human being besides ourselves again. Then you showed up. We were hoping… but you're as lost as we are now."

* * *

All of them sat in silence for a few moments. Jen shook herself mentally and asked, "How do you know all of this?"

Rick looked up and smiled slightly. "Dr. Ann MacGregor was the third principle developer of the Time Tunnel. She felt guilty about what happened -- felt responsible --and both Tony and Doug were her friends. She tried so hard to get them back, and to get the government to keep looking…

"When the Tunnel was shut down and destroyed, she was devastated. Quit her job. After five years of trying to have the project revived, she gave up her scientific career and moved to Silver Hills. A year after that, she got married. To a cop, named Robert Quinn. She's my mother."

"Your mother. So she must have taught you what she knew about time travel. But…"

"I know. How did I build a time machine without a huge amount of funding? How did I do it in secret, on my own time, hiding the machine at Bio-Lab? Besides being a genius, of course." He looked at Jen, smiling a little again. "It was your timeship."

"What? What are you talking about?"

He sighed. "Don't even try to deny it. You and the other Rangers showed up out of nowhere with incredibly advanced weapons, and those suits. I already knew time travel was possible… I guessed the truth, that you're from the future. I found out that Wes had had some Bio-Lab workers salvage and store away the wreckage from your ship. I went through it. Found the parts from your time machine."

"The timehole generator."

"If that's what you call it. I knew enough from Mom and my own research to recognize what it was. Learned enough from it to take a stab at building my own -- timehole generator. Made it small, used parts and instruments from the lab, told everyone it was an air purifier." He sighed again, heavily.

"Ever since Mom told me the story, I dreamed about finding some way to rescue Tony Newman and Doug Phillips. Save them, make her happy... That's what I was trying to do. I built a detector, too, from Mom's information, using some of your technology. I'm pretty sure I found them. Had the time machine calibrated to transmit to their location. I set it up to send, and then retrieve a few minutes later. Was going to test it, and then go through myself, try to bring them back with me.

"That's why I used it when we were attacked, I thought it was our only chance. I thought it would bring us back again. But something went wrong. Maybe because it was four people, more than the machine was set up to transport. It never retrieved us, and apparently Tony and Doug aren't here. I don't know what went wrong, and I don't know how to fix it, and now we're all stranded. I'm sorry."

Jen reached out to pat his hand. "Don't lose hope, Rick. You meant well." She smiled reassuringly. She didn't want to raise their hopes, but -- Rick had based his machine on her timeship. That meant future technology had interfered with history. Which meant Time Force would be searching for them, to return them to their own time. Her smile faded. She could only hope that search would be successful.

* * *

TBC...


	6. This Old House

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine. 

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references. 

Reviews are appreciated, please take a moment to leave one. 

The Time Tunnel

* * *

* * *

This Old House

* * *

Nightwing glanced again at the house he was watching from his seat in a tree, a large, two-story home set back from the road, almost hidden in the woods on a slight rise. A big place, impressive, somehow mysterious despite the afternoon sun. 

After only a few hours of sleep in his hotel room, he had gone back to Bio-Lab and spent much of the day there, interviewing the scientific staff, inspecting the scene of the battle and the disappearance. One fact stood out dramatically. They needed to recover that machine Rick Quinn had been using, if they were to have any chance of getting those six people back. True to Lt. Quinn's word, the police had cooperated. Jimmy Duran had given him what they had discovered, when he had come to Bio-Lab that morning. 

"You were right," he had said. "The hairs we found on that cap were dyed." 

"What was the natural color?" Nightwing had asked. 

A puzzled frown. "The lab guys said they're not sure. Maybe white. Said the hairs don't look quite human." 

"A wig, maybe?" 

"Maybe." Jimmy sounded dubious. 

"I think it _was_ Blondie at Bio-Lab. The same guy Eric and I ran into before." 

Miller had been there too, also with some interesting information. "Bio-Lab had a biochemist who was also into engineering and robotics, showed a lot of interest in the original cyclobots. He quit a few months ago." He held out a photograph. 

"I think that's him." With only a glance at the mystery man's face, he couldn't be entirely sure. But it looked like him. "What's his name?" 

"Norman Ryder." 

"Why did he quit?" 

Miller smiled without humor. "He had creative differences with his supervisors, especially Dr. Zaskin. I remember Norman. It was obvious he had a big crush on Gaby. Ms. Butler. She hardly noticed him. He quit around the time she started dating Eric." 

"Three people he had a grudge against. All at Bio-Lab. All missing. But he has brown hair..." 

"Could be dyed. Or a wig." 

Jimmy, listening in, looked thoughtful. "We can try for a search warrant. But frankly, I don't think we have enough." 

"Maybe I'll just check him out." 

"Don't do anything illegal," Jimmy had said. 

"Wouldn't dream of it," Nightwing had replied with a grin. "See you later." 

It was Ryder's house he was watching now, Ryder's house he intended to get a look at from the inside, as soon as he took care of a little problem. He looked down at the man he had spotted a few minutes ago, as he slipped through the trees. Then he moved, easing himself silently through the branches, dropping to the ground with only a light thump. 

"Shit!" Miller's usually impervious surface was broken by surprise. 

"What are you doing here?" Nightwing demanded. 

"The same as you. Checking Ryder out." 

"I intend to go inside. Alone. You can keep watch, if you want." He turned away. 

"Wait." Miller came after him. "I'm going with you." 

"Look, Mr. Miller, I appreciate the offer, but..." 

"Eric, Wes, and Gaby are my friends," he interrupted. "If we run into more cyclobots, you'll need help. And -- call me Steve." 

Nightwing considered him for a moment. "Think you can keep up?" he asked. 

"Just watch me." 

They slipped closer, under cover of the trees. It was a quiet area, away from the main roads, no other houses visible once they were away from the street. Quietly they moved through the shadows and paused under a large oak in back of the house. 

"We can climb up here," Nightwing said, his voice not much more than a whisper. He looked up at the house. Up close, it showed signs of age and neglect, the paint cracked and peeling, a shutter sagging, the grass overgrown. When Steve nodded, he started up, pausing halfway to see the Guardian doing a very credible job of climbing after him. 

Moments later they were quietly sliding open a window on the second floor. It let them into a cramped attic room, airless, dusty, and hot from a day of sun shining in through the single window. They stopped to listen, and then cautiously opened the door. 

It was an old-fashioned layout, a hallway leading past several doors, all shut, a narrow stairway leading down. The house was silent, and had the subliminal feel of emptiness. They opened each door, finding empty, dusty bedrooms, only one showing signs of occupancy, and a bathroom. Then they started down the flight of steep, shadowy stairs. 

"This guy's name should be Norman Bates," Nightwing muttered. 

"Who?" 

"Jesus. Remind me to take you to the movies when this is over." 

A few more minutes turned up nothing more than a few small electronic parts scattered on a coffee table. Nightwing stopped at the last door left to check. 

"Looks like a basement," he said, seeing a stairway leading down into darkness. 

"Let's go." 

* * *

Jen looked up at the sky apprehensively. It was afternoon already. Soon they would be facing their second night in a cave. She glanced around. At least no one had wandered off, and they were close to their cave, not that it afforded them all that much protection. 

The day had been spent exploring the immediate neighborhood, with indifferent results. She had hoped to find better shelter, but nothing had turned up. On the other hand, they had found plentiful supplies of nuts and seeds, and a few more eggs. They had collected plenty of wood. Of course, if they were here much longer, they'd have to think about ways to hunt, or fish… 

The danger of their situation seemed to have sunk in to everyone now, the close call of the day before lowering even Dr. Zaskin's spirits. Looking at them now, she saw grim faces, reddened by sunburn, damp with sweat. She blinked irritated eyes and sneezed again. 

"How are you holding up?" Gaby's voice asked from behind her. 

"Me? I'm fine." 

"Dr. Zaskin says the air here is full of pollen. That must be why you're sneezing so much." 

"Yeah, I kind of figured that out on my own." 

"Why don't you take a break?" 

Jen paused to drag the back of one hand across her forehead. "We're all tired. Probably should head back." 

"Okay. Sit down for a minute. I'll get the others." 

Before she could protest, Gaby was rounding up the other two. In moments they were walking through the strange, fern-like bushes, keeping a wary eye out for large animals with sharp teeth. 

Jen found herself walking with Gaby again. "Thanks," she said. 

"You've been taking care of us since we got here. You need to get some rest." 

"I'm okay." 

Gaby was silent for a while. They drew slightly away from the others. "Do you think we'll get out of this? Get home?" she finally asked, a slight quiver in her voice. 

Jen glanced at her, reading a mute appeal for reassurance in her face. But she was too tired for lies. "I don't know," she said. "Wes and Eric, and hopefully Time Force, will do whatever they can." 

Gaby hesitated for a moment. "Yes, they'll be looking for us." 

"Yeah." They trudged for a few more steps. "Want to know what I keep thinking about?" 

"What?" 

"It's silly, I guess. But I keep thinking I should have agreed to live in Wes's house. His father's house. That's what he wants, and there's no real reason for us to move out…" 

"I can understand why you want to," Gaby said with a quick glance. "Independence. A place of your own, privacy maybe." 

"But Mr. Collins has always been so nice…" 

"You still call him Mr. Collins?" 

"Yeah, can't get used to calling him Alan." 

"Wait till you're married. He'll want you to call him Dad." 

"I don't know if I could ever do that," Jen said with a laugh. 

"He _has_ been nice to you. And that's a beautiful, big house." 

"But I'm already living in his home, eating his food, wearing the clothes he and Wes paid for... He's going to end up paying for most of the wedding, too. I just -- want something of my own, you know? But I don't want to make Wes unhappy..." 

When Jen glanced at her, Gaby smiled. "I totally understand how you feel." 

"You're not going to take a chance and express an opinion about what I should do, are you?" 

"Hell, no." 

"I just hope I have to actually make that decision someday." 

They walked on in silence for a few steps before Gaby spoke again. "I keep thinking..." 

"What?" 

"You've known Eric longer than I have. Do you think he'd ever want us to move in together?" 

"Is that what you want?" 

"I... I don't really know. I mean, yes, I do, but I kind of figure he'll never want to... That maybe it would be a mistake..." She sighed. "I'm not usually so indecisive. Eric can be hard to figure out." 

"That's probably an understatement." Jen smiled. "Wes knows him better than I do. I think -- deep down he just wants to belong." 

Gaby gave her a quick glance. "I think so too. He wants -- well, love. A family. But something about it scares him." She paused. "He's changed, since that whole business with his parents. But he'll never really get over his childhood." 

"Hey!" Rick's voice interrupted them. "Come on! You won't believe what we found!" 

"Not again," Jen muttered, shaking her head as Gaby grinned at her. 

* * *

In his basement workshop, Norman looked around, taking a mental inventory. He had sent most of the cyclobots off with his most important equipment. The machine from Bio-Lab was still there, he didn't want it out of his sight. About two dozen cyclobots surrounded him, loaded with various odds and ends he had decided to take at the last minute. 

For a moment, he allowed himself to feel sad at leaving his home. Anger quickly took over, however, anger at the way he was being driven out. If that costumed freak hadn't attacked him, hadn't pulled his mask off, he wouldn't be in this position, forced to run away and hide in his secret factory, forced to be afraid they would find him anyway. He knew the Guardians knew who he was. At least he would know if they found out about his factory, thanks to what he had left behind in their computers. 

The machine… he picked it up, looked at it more closely. His cyclobots had almost dropped it when Nightwing had attacked him outside Bio-Lab. Something else he had to thank that guy for. He looked more closely, trying to see if any parts were loose or looked broken. It seemed unharmed. He smiled. Sooner or later he'd figure out what it was, what it could do. He put it down and looked around for a cyclobot to carry it. 

* * *

Wes watched Eric move restlessly in his spot by the fire, discomfort obvious in the way he tried, and failed, to find a better position. After a few more moments he sat up. 

"Eric, just lie down," Wes said, voice sharp with worry. "You're still weak." 

"I'm tired of just lying here…" Eric struggled to his feet. He seemed strong enough, as he gave Wes a disgusted glare and headed for the cave entrance. 

"Eric..." 

"Can't I get a little fresh air?" 

"Okay. I'll go with you." 

"Suit yourself." Eric didn't wait, bending stiffly to duck through the cave entrance as Wes stood up. 

"Don't go far," Doug said from where he sat next to Tony by the fire. "It's easy to get lost if you're not familiar with the territory." 

"Don't worry. We'll be back soon." Wes sighed and followed his partner. The afternoon light renewed his concern as he saw Eric's flushed face, and the slight tension in it that spoke of the pain he refused to admit to. 

"Let me see…" 

"Not much point, is there?" But he let Wes pull the jacket open, examining the dirty, knotted tee-shirt they had used as a bandage. Wes was momentarily glad it was black. Didn't show the blood much. Unfortunately it failed to completely hide the inflammation that was already reddening the skin. Next he looked at Eric's left forearm, revealed where they had torn his sleeve open to make room for the bandages. It was in even worse shape, swollen, red streaks running up his arm. He had already moved his morpher to his right wrist. 

"I'd better not move that bandage." He raised a hand to Eric's face, touching his forehead and then his cheek, before he could move away with an outraged expression. "Eric, you're burning up." 

"I know." Those dark eyes met his again. He could see the knowledge in them. After only a day he was sick. Without treatment the infection would probably get worse, the fever would get higher… He would only get sicker, and quickly. 

Guilt constricted his heart. "I'm sorry, Eric. This is my fault." 

"How do you figure that?" 

"If I hadn't shot you with my blaster, when the dinosaur had you…" 

Eric made a faint sound of disgust. "That was an accident." 

"But if I hadn't missed… you wouldn't have demorphed, and gotten hurt." 

"No, that dinosaur would have shaken me to death. This isn't your fault, Wes. Don't start blaming yourself." He looked at Wes's face sharply. "I mean it." 

"If you say so." Wes tried to smile. 

They both looked out, away from the cave. From where they stood, atop the plateau, they could see out over the expanse of forest, deep greens and browns blending in the sun, to a mountain in the near distance. "That's where we found the Q-Rex," Eric said softly. "This is the same cave where I hid from that Tyrannosaurus." 

"I remember." 

Eric was still staring into the distance, his face somber, when Wes glanced at him. After a few moments he spoke softly. "I wonder where Gaby and Jen are. What they're doing." He paused. "If they're all right." 

"Maybe -- maybe they're already home. Maybe that's why they're not here." 

"I hope so." 

"Makes you realize what's really important, doesn't it? Jen and I were separated for so long, thought we'd never be able to be together. It seemed like a miracle when we found out she could stay with me. And now -- we've spent so much time arguing about nothing. About where to live. When to get married." 

"Yeah. Silverware, for Christ's sake." Eric chuckled for a moment. 

"You ever think about marrying Gaby?" 

"No." A flicker of some unidentifiable emotion crossed his face. "I don't think I'd make a good husband. Or father." 

"I think you would." 

"Really?" Eric smiled at him with genuine warmth, rare for him. 

"Yeah, really. I think you'd be a natural." He returned the smile. 

"Well. Let's hope I get the chance to find out." Eric sighed. A sudden breeze gusted over them, bringing chill air with it. Eric shivered slightly and turned back to the cave. "I'm going in. Getting a little tired. Maybe I should lie down again." He stumbled as he took a step. 

"I'll help you." To Wes's surprise -- and alarm -- Eric didn't protest as he put a supporting arm around him. They walked slowly back inside the cave, to the light and warmth of their fire, as Wes tried in vain to leave his anxiety behind. 

* * *

Silently Nightwing crossed the basement floor, Steve right behind him, taking time to glance around. The place was set up as a workshop, the usual mechanical tools in neat racks. But the real work that had gone on was shown by the electronic parts strewn around, the computer components, disks, CD's, things that were less identifiable. He pointed as he caught sight of what was unmistakably a cyclobot arm, lying on a table. 

They could hear sounds now, seeming to come through a wall which was covered with tools on hooks and a tall bookcase. Both of them began to examine it, trying to pinpoint the sound of heavy footsteps and objects being moved, trying to find a way through. After a minute or so they found it. 

Steve pulled on a free hook, then nodded as the wall panel it was attached to began to move. Nightwing joined him, and they cautiously swung the panel open a crack, revealing a room on the other side. A big room, dimly lit. 

This was the real workshop, it was obvious. More components, more cyclobot parts. And the cyclobots themselves, moving around, carrying things, some of them disappearing through a door on the far side. The walls were lined with computer equipment. 

Blondie -- Norman -- was there, too, unmasked this time, except for sunglasses, out of place in that darkened room. His hair was blond again, now, with a silvery gleam. There was something odd about his skin, too, it looked slightly sunburned, with a hint of purple. Strange looking... 

They moved closer. The machine from Bio-Lab was sitting on a bench, not far away. Norman wasn't looking, there were no cyclobots in the immediate area. Nightwing caught Miller's eye and signaled. He was just reaching for it... 

"Get them!" a voice shouted. He threw a look over his shoulder, to see a cyclobot headed for them. Then Steve jumped forward and intercepted the robot, grabbing it around the 'waist', and twisting to trip it over his leg. 

"Take that thing and get out of here!" Steve shouted. Another cyclobot was on top of him, swinging a punch as he ducked and shoved it, sending it falling over the body of its comrade on the floor. 

Nightwing lifted the machine, staggering slightly. It was heavier that it looked. "Come on!" he shouted, heading for the stairs, quickly realizing he'd never be able to move fast enough up them to escape. And, as he looked back, he saw Steve in trouble, a pair of robots grasping his arms, struggling to free himself. 

Across the room Norman snarled at them. "Finish them off!" he shouted. "Get that machine!" 

More cyclobots were coming, reaching out with deadly metal fingers. Nightwing ducked past them, trying to reach Steve, holding the machine in front of him. Then it was yanked out of his grasp as they cornered him, grabbing, barely missing as he twisted away, then not missing, a metal fist catching the side of his face. He fell, head spinning, and saw more hands reaching for him... 

But something else was going on. All of them looked up at the sound of blaster fire. Nightwing twisted to look behind him, seeing someone on the stairway, a Ranger, this one in black and white, weapon drawn. He fired again, sending the robots sparking and jerking to collapse on the floor. 

Norman ran through the far doorway, followed by a few cyclobots carrying equipment. The remaining cyclobots turned again to attack. The one holding the machine ran to follow its master. Steve pulled free, drew his weapon, and opened fire. Then the Ranger was running past, picking off cyclobots, savagely kicking down the few who got close enough to attack him. 

Nightwing crossed the room to Steve. "You okay?" he asked breathlessly. 

"Yeah, sure." 

They both ran to follow the Ranger outside, just in time to see him shoot down a last wave of cyclobots. In moments the robots were no more than piles of scrap. They all looked around. There was no sign of Norman or the machine he had stolen. 

"Power down," the Black Ranger said. He raised his arm and an instant later was transformed into a man in a white uniform trimmed with black, with dark hair and eyes, but a _very_ familiar face. 

Nightwing blinked in astonishment. "Wes?" he asked, uncertainly. 

"The name's Alex," the stranger said with a cold stare. Nightwing blinked again. Except for his coloring -- and a completely different attitude -- he was Wes's double. After looking Nightwing up and down, he asked, "Who was that? What's going on here?" 

"Who's asking?" 

"The Ranger who just saved your lives." Alex frowned. 

"It's okay, I know him," Steve said. "He's... an old friend." 

"From Jen's time?" Nightwing asked, grinning as Alex shot him a sharp look. 

"I don't know what you're talking about." 

"Look, I already know there's time travel involved here. And I'm making a guess you're from the future." 

"Clever, aren't you?" Alex said with another cold look. 

Nightwing stepped closer. "Six people have disappeared. I'd say the only important thing here is getting them back." 

Alex considered him for another moment before surprising him with a smile. "All right." He turned to Steve. "I need to talk to Jen. And Wes, and Eric." 

"I'm afraid that's going to be a problem." 

* * *

TBC... 


	7. Escape

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine. 

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references. 

Reviews are appreciated, please take a moment to leave one. 

The Time Tunnel

* * *

* * *

Escape

* * *

"Time Force always monitors the timestream. We detected two unauthorized timeholes originating here. Initially thought it was someone from our time again, interfering with history. Command sent me to investigate. I was going to see what Jen, Wes, and Eric knew about it, but..." Alex paused to stare at them. "When I got here, I did a routine scan for mutant lifesigns. Picked one up. It was in that house, where I found you fighting those new cyclobots." 

"Norman Ryder's house. There was no one else there," Nightwing said thoughtfully. "Are you saying Ryder's a mutant?" 

"Could be. But that's not the immediate problem now." Alex shrugged. "Those six people shouldn't have been removed from this time, and I have to get them back. I've already traced the first timehole, it used more power and left a clear track. But unfortunately it covered the track of the second one. I don't think I can get an accurate fix on it." 

He paced, stopped, and turned to face them again. They were in the Bio-Lab laboratory that had so recently been the scene of a battle, the place where six people had disappeared into nothing. Steve Miller also watched in alert silence, Alan Collins with barely repressed impatience and anxiety. 

"Can you find them or not? Can you get them back?" the older man asked. 

Alex's face softened. "As soon as I get back to my ship, I'll go for Jen, Dr. Zaskin, Rick, and Gaby. But Wes and Eric went through the second timehole. I haven't been able to find the exact destination." 

"What? You can't find my son? And Eric?" 

"Not at this time, but we have two possibilities. Rick may be able to tell us where they were sent. Or if we can get his timehole generator back, it might have the information we need." He paced a few steps again. "The first transport took them about sixty-five million years into the past." 

There was a murmur of surprise. All of them stared in astonishment. 

"Sixty-five million years?" Collins asked. 

"You mean -- dinosaurs? Jesus, we've got to get them out of there!" Nightwing exclaimed. Then he glanced at Collins, realizing it wasn't a tactful thing to say. 

"Jen's got her morpher. So do Wes and Eric. They can defend themselves." 

"Do you think Wes and Eric were transported to the same time? Maybe you'll find them there, too?" Collins said. 

Alex's face was grim. "The two destinations were close, but not the same. I think they're anywhere from a few hundred to a million years apart. Hopefully we'll know more when I find Jen and her group. I'll go back to my ship and leave immediately." Turning to Steve and Nightwing he continued, "You two, work on finding Norman Ryder. We need that generator." 

"Yes, _sir_," Nightwing said, grinning as Alex threw him a scowl as he left. 

"Well, you heard him," he said to Steve. "Let's keep working. I want to take another look at Ryder's house." 

* * *

"It's beautiful," Zaskin said wistfully. 

They were back in their cave, resting, all four of them sitting in the entrance and having a meal of nuts and seeds. They had been living on nuts, seeds, figs, and the occasional egg. Jen reflected that she could get tired of this very quickly. She followed Zaskin's gaze, out over the landscape spread before them from the height of their cave. 

"Yes, it _is_ beautiful. But I'd rather be back in Silver Hills." She sniffled and wiped her nose. Again. 

"I'm with you," Gaby said. "A nice smoggy city street would look pretty beautiful to me right now." 

"I have to admit, I just want to go home," Rick said. "I'm really sorry I got all of us stuck here." 

"If you hadn't, those cyclobots would have gotten us." 

"Anyway, it doesn't matter," Jen added. "We're here." 

"And just think of the things we have the chance to see, how much we can learn," Zaskin said dreamily. "I can write a paper -- a series of papers -- once we get back… _If _we get back," he concluded, his expression fading into a frown. 

"I miss television," Gaby said softly. 

"Are you kidding? I miss sleeping in a nice warm, soft bed," Rick replied. 

"I miss my laboratory." That was Zaskin. 

"I miss pizza. And hamburgers." 

"My wife. My daughter." 

"I miss Wes…" Jen said, now becoming thoroughly depressed. 

"Yeah," Gaby agreed. "I miss Eric. And a clean bathroom. Not necessarily in that order." 

Jen laughed with the others, and then sat up abruptly, an electric thrill running through her as her morpher chirped. She raised her arm and opened her mouth, nothing coming out for a moment as her mind simply went blank with hope. 

_"Jen?"_ A familiar voice asked. 

For an instant she thought it was Wes, but it was just a bit different… "Alex?" 

_"Jen. I'm here to get you."_

"Oh, Alex, you don't know how glad I am to hear your voice." 

_"About as glad as I am to hear yours. Are all of you all right?"_

"We're fine. Can't wait to go home." 

_"I've got a fix on your location."_

"Look!" Rick shouted, pointing into the sky. 

"We can see you!" Jen grinned, watching the ship circle overhead and swoop lower. 

_"There's no good place to land near you... I see a clearing, about a kilometer west of you."_

"I know where it is." 

_"Good. Meet you there."_

"Right. See you soon." 

She lowered her arm, still smiling. The others stared at her with their faces alight with hope. "We're rescued," she said. "Come on, we should be able to get there before dark." 

* * *

Eric woke with a gasp, his injuries coming to life at a careless shift in position. He stared around, disoriented, expecting his own familiar bedroom, or Gaby's, and finding himself looking at rocks, a dirt floor, and the dim interior of a cave stretching into the distance. After a few moments the pain subsided and he eased himself up, propped against a rock, cradling his arm on his knees. He rubbed his good hand over his face, recognizing the inner heat that meant his fever was worse. 

"Does it hurt?" a voice asked. He looked, and recognized Tony on the other side of the fire. 

"I'm fine. How long was I asleep?" 

"A couple of hours, I guess. Hard to tell." 

"Where's Wes?" 

"He and Doug went out to scout around." 

"Why didn't you go?" 

"We thought someone should keep an eye on you." 

"You thought wrong," Eric replied, annoyed. "I don't need a babysitter just because of a few scratches." 

Tony smiled, then became serious. "Those are more than scratches. You lost a lot of blood. And they're infected." 

Eric shrugged, and got to his feet. "How long have they been gone?" 

"They left right after you fell asleep." 

"Damn. Don't think we should split up." With a scowl, he headed toward where light shone into the cave. 

"That's not a good idea. You're still weak." 

Eric didn't bother to answer that. He walked to the small cave entrance, stooped to get out, and found it harder than he thought to get up again. Outside, he stopped to look out over the forest, colors deepening as the sun sank, realizing he had no idea where to look. The crunch of a footstep made him turn, to see Tony stepping up to stand beside him. 

"I'm sure they're all right. Doug knows what he's doing, and Wes has his suit, and his weapon." Tony paused, eyeing him. "You should come back inside." 

"I'm all right." 

"Your friend told me you're a stubborn bastard." 

Eric regarded him coldly. "I still think you two have something to do with us being here." 

Tony bristled. "Why should you think that?" 

"Out of billions of years of the past, we land in the same time as you. Seems like a big coincidence, doesn't it?" 

"We certainly didn't bring you here, if that's what you're getting at." 

"Why should I believe you?" Eric stepped closer aggressively. 

"Why should we want you here?" Tony confronted him, just as angry. "Damn it, we risked our lives to save your neck! And you're not even grateful!" 

He was right, not that Eric could bring himself to admit it. He realized he was being unreasonable, and why. He was worried about Gaby and the others, and in pain, and taking it out on someone else, as usual... They glared at each other for a few more seconds before Eric looked away uncomfortably, hunched a shoulder, and turned back to the cave. He led the way back in and to the fire, and sat, finding the warmth welcome. He was suddenly cold, and conscious of the other man's eyes on him as he shivered. Settled against his rock again, he watched as Tony leaned in to add another branch to the fire and poke it into renewed life. 

"Thanks," he muttered, looking up long enough to see Tony smile, then staring into the flames. 

* * *

"Hold up for a minute." Half a mile away, Wes stopped for a brief rest, finding a rock to sit on. He looked around. "Thought I loved the outdoors. It's only been a day, and I'm sick of trees." 

Doug dropped to sit on the ground cross-legged, and looked up at him with a smile. "Yeah, so are we. Love to see a building again, or a car." 

Wes looked at his face, catching the tone of longing. "Must have been pretty rough for you guys." 

A sigh, as Doug looked down at his hands. "It hasn't been easy. A struggle every day, just to stay alive. Between trying to figure out what's safe for us to eat, and trying to avoid being eaten…" He smiled again, without any real happiness. "Tony and I are both city boys. Scientists. I guess we led sheltered lives. We were totally unprepared for all this. Jumping around through time, always in danger…" 

He sighed. "Sometimes I'm amazed we've survived this long. Disasters, wars, now this... The things we've seen -- some of it's pretty amazing. If we ever get back, we could write a book. Sure to be a best-seller. Then we could retire, and just sit in our backyards the rest of our lives." 

"Wouldn't you get bored?" 

He laughed. "We've had enough excitement to last a couple of lifetimes." 

"I guess. Eric and I have had a pretty exciting time, too. I guess we could use some boredom. Maybe we'll come over and sit in your backyard with you." He smiled at the image of all of them sitting in lawn chairs behind some suburban house, talking... Tony and Doug, him and Eric. Jen and Gaby... The smile faded. 

"Sounds good." Doug's expression became serious again. "Once we realized the Time Tunnel wasn't going to find us again, we got pretty hopeless, I guess. The worst part was knowing we were all alone." He looked up again. "It's great to have someone else to talk to, but I'm sorry you and Eric got stuck here too." 

"Don't give up. I haven't. We have friends looking for us." 

"But how would they get us back, even if they figure out what happened?" 

"There's people we know who could do it." 

Doug looked away again. "Gives us something to hope for, anyway." 

* * *

"Dr. Zaskin, we need to stay together," Jen said. Again. "It's starting to get dark, I want to get to the timeship." 

"Right. Sorry." He backed away from the small, unfamiliar flowers he had been examining with a regretful look. "It's just that we have such an opportunity here. It's a shame to waste it." 

"I understand. But I'm more concerned about keeping us alive." 

"But no one has ever seen these things before, and probably never will again, at least in our time. The value to science is -- is unimaginable! And this is our last chance!" 

Jen looked at his face, glowing with scientific zeal, and smiled. "I suppose we could take a few minutes to explore, as long as it's on the way. Just make it fast." 

"Wonderful! Let me get Rick!" 

"Don't wander off by yourselves!" Jen called after him. With a sigh she watched him talk to Rick, both of them waving their arms and pointing in several directions. Then they set out for a clump of uninspiring-looking ferns. She and Gaby trailed behind. 

"Can't blame him, you know. Being in this time really is exciting, even to me," Gaby said. 

"Me, too. Now that I know we're getting out of here, I can almost enjoy this." Jen smiled, watching Dr. Zaskin pick part of the plant and add it to the seed cone, flowers, and the dead giant dragonfly he was carrying as souvenirs. 

"The first thing I'm going to do is take a nice long shower. That's before I go out for a big dinner. Can't wait to see Eric, I'll bet he's going crazy." 

"I know what you mean, I wish Alex had brought Wes, but those timeships are small… What's he got now?" A few more steps brought them to where Zaskin and Rick were bending over a nest of large dinosaur eggs, engaged in a heated debate. 

"Dr. Zaskin, this nest is out in the open. The mother must be taking care of it, protecting it." 

"But most dinosaurs just laid their eggs and abandoned them, just like modern reptiles." 

"We don't know that. Maybe most of them stayed with their nests. Anyway, I think _this_ mother is probably around here somewhere." 

"You have no evidence for that. We have to assume they behave like their closest relatives, the reptiles." 

"But their closest relatives may have been birds, and _they_ take care of their eggs." 

"Um, guys, I think Rick's right," Gaby said, laying a hand on Jen's arm. 

They all looked up at the sound of a footstep. A very large, heavy footstep. What they saw was a very large, heavy creature emerging from the trees surrounding them. It stopped, and stared at them. It was big, about twenty feet long and close to ten feet high, covered in scaly light brown skin, walking on two powerful legs, with short arms and fingers ending in long claws, jaws that looked almost big enough to swallow a person whole, filled with rows of long, sharp teeth. And they were getting an excellent view of those teeth as the creature opened its mouth in a low, rumbling roar. 

"Just back away slowly," Jen said. 

They did, retreating as the dinosaur eyed them. It took a step toward them and stopped. They moved a little faster. Just as they reached a stand of trees, it roared again and charged. 

The group of humans broke and ran. Jen went last, keeping the other three in front of her as they fled. For a moment she hoped that the dinosaur would be slow and lumbering, but it wasn't, it came after them with surprising speed, brushing trees aside on its way. A glance behind her showed it catching up rapidly. 

There was no choice, she stopped, raised her morpher and pressed the button, a flash of light flowing over her as she morphed into the Pink Ranger, as always the sensation of power and energy making her feel momentarily invincible. That impression disappeared as soon as the light faded and she saw the monster towering over her. 

Summoning her blaster, she backed away, firing at its head, catching it with a solid hit on the snout. It slowed, shaking its head and roaring with pain or anger, or both. But it kept coming. Jen ran, stopping every few steps to turn and fire. The creature barely slowed down, it only seemed to get angrier. Jen raised the power of her blaster and tried again. This time, it stopped and roared, clawing at the air, then started after her _again_… 

"Doesn't anything stop this thing?" Jen exclaimed to herself as she concentrated on running. The others were a distance ahead now, she could hear them crashing through the underbrush. Then she heard screams. 

Bursting through a last clump of bushes, she saw them. Zaskin, Rick, and Gaby were huddled together back to back in a small clearing, surrounded by perhaps a dozen dinosaurs about three feet high, probably weighing as much as a small woman. Not big, as dinosaurs went, but armed with vicious-looking teeth and impressive claws on both feet and long-fingered hands. They were hunting as a pack, circling their human prey, dashing in to strike. Gaby was clutching her shoulder, blood running down her arm. Even as Jen stopped and aimed her blaster, one of the creatures darted close and ripped at Zaskin, slashing his leg. 

She fired, and blinked as she saw another energy beam coming from the other side of the clearing. In another moment, she felt a dizzying wave of relief as the Black Ranger came running out. Alex aimed and shot several times, picking off the animals, leaving them stunned and twitching. Their companions turned to stare at him, snarling, and then seemed to melt away into the trees. 

But it wasn't over. Her friend was still chasing them; the larger dinosaur crashed through the trees into the open. After a pause for another roar, it charged at them. 

"This way! Run!" Alex shouted. Gaby, Zaskin, and Rick ran towards him, he ran towards Jen, passing them. At Jen's side, he stopped and added his blaster to hers. They fired several shots, stopping the creature, but not putting it out. 

"It's no good, Alex!" she cried. "It's too strong to knock out. We're just slowing it down!" 

"Come on!" 

He took her arm. They ran, dodging between the trees, using their Ranger-enhanced speed to gain a little ground on their pursuer. The heavy thud of dinosaur footsteps pounded behind them. The others came into sight, fortunately running in the right direction. A moment later they were in a larger clearing, a timeship visible in the middle. 

"Head for the ship!" 

They were already running for it. Alex and Jen stopped again, both turning to fire repeatedly. The dinosaur slowed and stopped again, shaking its head and roaring. It staggered slightly, the first sign of weakness. Encouraged, they fired a few more rounds before running again. 

The footsteps behind them started again as they dashed for the ship. Alex fumbled to key the door open and shoved the others in roughly, including Jen, before stepping in himself and sealing the entrance. Jen felt herself sag with relief, leaning against the wall, seeing the others slump in exhaustion and reaction. Then Alex straightened again as they heard a crash reverberate through the ship. 

"It's trying to get in!" Jen cried, her voice quivering just a little. 

"It'll never get through the hull. But we'd better get out of here before it damages something." Alex quickly stepped around the others, demorphed, and sat in the pilot's seat. He touched the controls, bringing the little ship to life. Perhaps the sound of the engines scared the dinosaur off, as the viewscreen activated they could see it backing away. 

"There's not enough seats for all of you," he said. "Jen, take the co-pilot's seat. The rest of you, sit on the deck and hang on to something." He smiled at their frightened faces. "Don't worry. You'll be back in Silver Hills in twenty minutes." 

* * *

TBC... 


	8. There Was a Purple Man

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine. 

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references. 

Reviews are appreciated, please take a moment to leave one. 

The Time Tunnel

* * *

* * *

There Was a Purple Man

* * *

"Alex, we need the medical equipment." Jen knelt next to Dr. Zaskin. He was still bleeding badly from a slash in his thigh. Gaby was less severely injured, but the deep scratches in her shoulder would also require treatment. 

"Give me a minute." 

The ship dropped rapidly over the beach and settled onto the sand. Jen glanced up to see the viewscreen showing dusky evening light. In another moment Alex had shut down the engines, crossed to the equipment racks, and was next to her, holding the ship's medical unit. He quickly set it up, ripping Zaskin's pants leg open and attaching the leads to his skin on both sides of the wound. They all watched as the bleeding stopped and the gash began slowly to close. 

"Who are you?" Rick asked, finally looking up at Alex. 

He shrugged. "A friend of Jen's." 

"What are you, Wes's twin or something?" 

Alex's brows contracted, in annoyance, Jen knew. "No." 

"You're from the future, aren't you?" 

Alex gave Jen a quick glance. She smiled. "No, I didn't tell him, but he knows. In fact, Rick is the one who built the timehole generator that got us into the past." 

"Time travel isn't supposed to be invented for another hundred years." 

"He knew some time travel technology from an unsuccessful government project that we didn't know about, and he based his machine on what he learned from examining the wreckage of our timeship." 

Alex looked at Rick again with more interest. "You did? Very smart. Of course -- now you know too much. We'll have to kill you." 

"_What?_" Rick looked at Jen with alarm. "He's kidding, isn't he?" 

"I don't know, Rick. Alex doesn't have a sense of humor. I think he means it." 

He looked so frightened that she started to giggle. It grew into a laugh, all of them joining in, as much out of relief as the actual humor of the situation. As they quieted down Alex disconnected the medical unit, beckoned to Gaby, and attached it to her shoulder. 

"What do you mean, I don't have a sense of humor?" he said softly with a glance at Jen, giving her a smile. 

"You're improving." She smiled in return. "Is Wes all right? How's he holding up? Too bad he couldn't come with you." 

To her surprise and alarm, his face quickly became serious, even grim. "I'm afraid I have some bad news," he said. 

* * *

Nightwing got up from the bench where he had been sitting as Alex led the little procession into the Bio-Lab laboratory. He looked them over as they filed in and found seats. Gaby and Dr. Zaskin were impressively bloodstained and all of them looked tired and worn, but determined. 

Alan Collins had also gotten the news of his people's return. He stepped up to Jen and hugged her, smiling. "So glad you're back. And that you're all right," he murmured. 

"I'm fine. And it's good to see you, too." A smile broke through the tension on her face. "Don't worry, we'll find Wes and Eric." 

Collins turned to Alex. "Have you had any luck tracing the second timehole?" 

"I'm afraid not." He took a step closer to where Rick was sitting. "Rick? It's your invention. Do you know where it sent them?" 

Rick shifted nervously. "The thing is, I don't know what happened. My detector found a time location for Tony Newman and Doug Phillips…" He gave them a brief description of his attempt to rescue two scientists who had been stranded in time as a result of a secret government attempt to build a time machine in 1968. 

"My machine was supposed to take me to them, give me a few minutes, and then bring us back. It transported us, but apparently to the wrong time, since Tony and Doug weren't there. And I guess instead of bringing us back, for some reason it sent Wes and Eric through time, too. But I don't know what went wrong. Probably the fact that it wasn't set up for four people. Maybe it overloaded. Without examining the machine, I can't tell what it did." 

"If it overloaded, that could explain why I could trace the first transport. It had a stronger signal," Alex said. 

"Could also explain why it took us to the wrong time. But it might not have been off by much. Maybe Tony and Doug are in the late Cretaceous, about sixty-five to seventy million years ago, about the same time we were in." 

"So maybe the second timehole went to the right time?" 

Rick's face was both thoughtful and hopeful. "If it overloaded, it might have recycled automatically and restarted the transport. I think you're right, it took them to where Tony and Doug are. And then it didn't have enough power to bring them back." 

"Do you have the exact time location?" 

"No… I got the readings, but I couldn't figure out exactly what they meant, just fed them into the time machine. But the detector should be right here…" He got up and moved to the back of the laboratory, near where the timehole generator had been, muttering softly as he searched through piles of equipment and machinery that had been thrown around in the attack. 

"Good, we're getting somewhere," Alex said. "Nightwing, do you have anything?" 

"Afraid not. Steve and I went back to Norman Ryder's house. Didn't find anything definite, but..." He paused for a moment, frowning. "There was no machinery there that could have manufactured all those cyclobots. He must have another place, a factory where he made them. If we can find that, maybe we can find him and that time machine." 

"Do you think you have any way to do that?" 

"I have resources I can call on." He turned to face Gaby. "You're the computer security expert. It looked like Norman loaded a diskette into a workstation after the attack here. Bio-Lab's network people are looking into it, but…" 

"But I should get on it too. Right away." 

"If you're up to it." 

"I'm fine. I just want to help." 

"Good," Alex said. He turned to look at Rick. "Did you find it?" 

"Yes," Rick answered, looking up from the instrument he was bent over. "It's broken. Going to take a while to fix it and get that reading." 

"Will you stay and work on it?" 

"Of course. I just need to call my parents first, let them know I'm all right." 

"I'll help you," Jen said. 

"And so will I," Alex added. "All right. I suggest the rest of you get some rest." 

After an exchange of nods, Nightwing was on his way out. He had an idea. He smiled, picturing Barbara in her headquarters, surrounded by her computers and equipment, connected to cyberspace all over the globe. In a moment, she could be talking to someone halfway around the world, looking through a database in some obscure corner of another country... 

When she could no longer function as Batgirl, she had found a new way to fight crime, using technology, connections, and knowledge. It made her feel free, feel powerful again, and made her extremely useful to crimefighters who needed information. Like he did, now. Time to call in Oracle's unique talents. 

* * *

Gaby walked into her office and sat down with a sigh. She had stopped off in the Silver Guardians' barracks for a quick and badly needed shower and changed her ruined shirt for a baggy old sweater she kept in her office. The rest of her clothes were still dirty, smelly, and bloody, and she was tired, and aching from spending a night sleeping on a dirt floor. At least she had found her purse, where she had dropped it in the lab during the fight, so she could get into her car and apartment. But clean clothes and a comfortable bed, even a square meal, would have to wait. There was just a faint chance that whatever Norman had done to the network would lead back to him. 

The brief vision of Eric, stranded and alone, rose in her mind. He always seemed so strong, so tough, but she had seen the vulnerable side, knew he could be hurt like anyone else. With an effort, she shook off the mood. Eric wasn't alone, Wes was with him. They were both Rangers, they could take care of themselves. 

Better to do something, keep busy, than waste time worrying. Soothed by the familiar surroundings and the familiar task, she logged on to the network and began to search for signs of intrusion, altered files, unexplained traffic. The network people had found a virus they thought Norman had left, but they might have missed something. 

For a moment she frowned. Norman. It had been a shock when Alex told them he was the man who had built the cyclobots and attacked Bio-Lab. She remembered him, not a bad guy, not bad looking either, but -- creepy somehow, withdrawn, unfriendly. She had occasionally caught him staring at her, the way a starving wolf would look at a juicy steak... Then he had disappeared, and she had heard he had had an argument with Mike Zaskin and left. 

He had been a biochemist specializing in the computer modeling of drug reactions, and also had a degree in engineering, Zaskin had told them. A genius, certainly, especially if he had really figured out a way to duplicate the cyclobots. But what was he after? 

It took several hours, and she was yawning and bleary-eyed when she found it. An inconspicuous worm, hiding in the network servers, monitoring communications and reporting back to an unidentified IP address. It had to be him, it had been planted at the time of the attack. She smiled as she copied the address, fingers moving over the keyboard a moment later to delete the worm. 

A phone call started the process of tracing that address, but she knew it would take time, and perhaps lead nowhere. At any rate, nothing would happen before morning. Time to go home, change clothes, catch a couple of hours of sleep, get back early and see if she could find anything more. With a few quick movements, she logged out and started to get ready to leave. 

* * *

_So, you're back. And you found it. Clever girl._ Norman smiled at his computer monitor. He was glad they were back, or at least that she was. The little program he had left behind at Bio-Lab had been very helpful, sending him information from the Silver Guardians' email and work logs. It had told him that they knew who he was. He frowned at that thought. 

Fools. They would never have known, if that Nightwing character hadn't seen his face. Now his secret identity was gone. He was forced to hide here, like a fugitive. But not necessarily alone. A smile crossed his face again. The worm he had planted had alerted him to Gaby's presence on the network, and had sent its final packet telling him that she had deleted it. She would be going home soon -- it was late and no one would be around -- if he hurried, he could have a little surprise for her. 

* * *

"Babs?" Dick got up and moved a few restless steps across his hotel room. It was late, and quiet, the kind of quiet that set his nerves on edge. It was even later in Gotham, but it didn't surprise him that Barbara was still up. She had become a creature of the night, even more than Bruce or himself. 

_"Dick. I'm glad to hear from you."_ The familiar soft voice was deliberately casual, but Dick could hear eagerness and concern underneath. 

"Yeah, me too. Glad I got you." 

_"What's up? Have you found anything?"_

"We got four of the missing people back, including one of the Rangers." 

_"That's great. Good work."_

"_I_ had nothing to do with it. Believe it or not, another Ranger showed up. Just sort of walked in and took over." He laughed. "Reminds me of Bruce a little." 

Barbara ignored the remark. _"Where did he come from?"_

"Same place as the original five. Tell you all about it later. Anyway, I've been trying to track down the guy who attacked Bio-Lab. No luck so far." 

_"Hmm. You'll find something soon."_

"That's why I'm calling." Dick drew in a breath. "I need Oracle's help." 

_"Name it."_

"The guy we're after. His name is Norman Ryder. He inherited a lot of money from his grandfather. Millions, I think. I was in his house, there's no way he manufactured all those robots there, he must have another place, big enough to be a factory, but I can't find any record of him owning more property. Think you could poke around, see if you can find anything?" 

_"Norman Ryder." _He felt a slight hesitation from her. _"If he's rich... Dick, Bruce moves in those circles. Is it okay if I involve him?"_

He sighed. "Whatever it takes." 

"_I'll get back to you as soon as I can."_

"Okay. Thanks, Babs." 

_"Don't thank me yet."_

There was an awkward pause before Dick spoke again. "I'd better get some sleep while I have the chance. Talk to you later." 

_"All right. Keep in touch."_

"You too. Miss you." He touched the phone gently with his fingertips. "Love you." 

_"I love you."_

It was true, he missed her, with a sudden aching intensity. He stared at the phone for a moment after hanging up. Then, with a sigh, he turned away from the window and peeled his shirt over his head. A few minutes later he was lying in bed, staring into the darkness before firmly closing his eyes. 

* * *

It was dark, the fire dying down, casting a few flickering shadows across the cave roof. Eric stirred restlessly, suddenly flushing with heat. He raised a hand to wipe sweat from his face and pushed himself to a sitting position. It was an effort. He bent his head, a wave of dizziness sending spots dancing before his eyes. 

"Eric?" Wes was awake, peering at him groggily. 

"Go back to sleep." 

"What's wrong?" 

"Nothing. I want some water." Eric stiffly heaved himself to his knees and climbed to his feet. The dizziness returned, making him unsteady. He reached out to brace himself against a boulder, gasping despite himself as his wounded arm contacted the stone. 

"Eric, lie down. I'll get some water for you." Wes was up, holding his good arm, pulling him back to the ground, his face pinched with concern. 

"I can do it myself..." 

"Just shut up and lie down." Wes smiled as Eric blinked in surprise, then left him and went to the small stream that flowed through another part of the cave. In moments he was back, carrying their wooden 'cup'. He sat beside Eric, steadied him with an arm around his shoulders, and held the cup for him. 

"I can hold it myself, thank you," Eric said sharply. 

"All right." Wes gave it to him, watched him drink, and took it back. He eased Eric down again. "How do you feel?" he asked. 

"Like shit." It was true, he was weak, lightheaded, and he could feel the fever burning inside him. The pain in his arm was getting so bad that only exhaustion let him sleep. Abruptly he shivered, the heat turning to chills. 

"The fire's burning down. I'll take care of it," Tony's voice said from the other side of the fireplace. Eric saw him get up and move to their small pile of wood. Doug was up too, watching, his face almost as concerned as Wes's. 

"I'm all right..." Eric said. The fire brightened, warmth reaching out to him as his eyes drifted shut again. 

He heard the others moving around, and heard their voices murmuring softly. 

_"Isn't there anything we can do?"_

_"I'm afraid not. No medicine, and none of us is a doctor."_

_"Just try to make him comfortable."_

_No need to whisper,_ he wanted to say as he sank towards sleep, _I know when I'm dying._

* * *

Gaby paused at the laboratory door, watching for a few seconds before she went in. Three heads bent over a pile of equipment and tools. All so intent they didn't notice her until she was only a few steps away. Rick looked up and smiled. 

"Hi," she said. "How's it coming?" 

"Not bad. We should be done in a few more hours." 

"You look tired." 

"We can't stop now." 

Jen straightened and stretched. "We want to get Wes and Eric back as soon as possible." 

"Believe me, I want Eric back, too. Anything I can do to help?" 

"No. We've got it covered." They were concentrating on their task again, not looking at her. 

"Okay. I'm going home now. I'll be back early. Good luck." 

"Bye," Rick said absently. 

With a smile -- which none of them saw -- Gaby turned away and headed out of the lab, and to the front door, signing out and nodding to the security guard. When she got outside she paused for a moment, remembering how late it was, well after midnight. The darkness and silence sent a quiver of uneasiness through her, and for a moment she considered going back, getting someone to walk her to her car. But the guard wasn't allowed to leave his post. Rick and Jen were busy, Alex intimidated her, and she didn't want to interrupt them anyway. 

She set out through the almost empty parking lot, listening to her footsteps click along the pavement. Night lamps cast stark shadows around her, the air seemed thin and chill. A gust of wind lifted her hair. And then a shadowy form stepped out from behind a van into her path. 

A man, average height, average build. Pale skin. The light seemed to glint off his hair in a silvery shimmer. His face was shadowed, but she could see him smile, an expression that chilled her to the bone. She stopped and hesitated uncertainly, watching him approach a step closer. 

"Hello, Gaby," he said, his voice ordinary, but a thread of menace woven under its surface. 

"Who are you?" Her own voice trembled more than she liked. 

"Don't you remember me? I'm hurt." He stepped closer still, turning so his face was illuminated. 

"_Norman?_" She stared. It _was_ Norman. But different, and not just his manner. In the bright light, his hair was a startling, metallic silver, with an iridescent purplish sheen. His skin was a pale violet, and his eyes -- they were worst of all, gleaming, reflective silver, almost seeming to glow with a malevolent intensity. "What -- what have you done to yourself?" she gasped without thinking. 

"There have been a few changes." He smiled again and stepped closer. "I've come for you, Gaby. It's time for us to be together." 

She backed away, but it was too late. With a swift movement -- _too_ swift, it occurred to her -- he was on her, grabbing her arms. Quickly he dragged her toward the van. A movement caught her eyes, and she saw two cyclobots come out into the open and start for them. 

She tried to yank away, but he was strong -- _too_ strong -- remembering the martial arts lessons Eric had given her, she kicked at him and then stamped on his foot, and had the momentary satisfaction of seeing him wince. 

"Stop that!" he snarled, tightening his grip painfully. The cyclobots moved in and metal arms reached for her. Too late, she screamed, only one cry ringing through the empty lot before a robot hand clamped over her mouth. Caught in bands of steel, she struggled in vain as she was lifted and dumped into the van. 

* * *

TBC... 


	9. Homesick

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine. 

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references. 

Reviews are appreciated, please take a moment to leave one. 

The Time Tunnel

* * *

* * *

Homesick

* * *

_"Dick?"_ Bruce's voice, sounding strong and alert despite the hour. 

"Yeah. Man, you're up bright and early." Dick wished he could say the same for himself, hearing the hoarseness of his own voice. He got up from the hotel chair and stretched, trying to suppress a yawn. 

_"It's not that early here. Did I wake you?"_ Bruce's voice was amused. 

"No, I was up. Just looking for some coffee... Have to get in to Bio-Lab." 

_"That's why I'm calling. I have that information you wanted about Norman Ryder."_

He frowned in sudden, unreasonable annoyance. "I asked Babs for that. Why are you calling instead of her?" 

_"She asked me to help. We both worked on it, but I got the last pieces this morning. She may not be up yet, and I thought you'd want to know right away."_

"Okay, whatever. What do you have?" 

_"He inherited twenty million dollars from his grandfather. Also a house."_

"I know about that." 

_"About a year ago, he formed a corporation. Never did any legitimate business that we could find. But we traced it through a few dummies and…"_

"Never mind that. What's the bottom line?" 

_"He owns an old chemical manufacturing plant outside Silver Hills. The name's Glasgow Chemical. It's not doing business, but he's been paying for power, water, and fuel. And he's been buying equipment and supplies. Mostly electronics and mechanical parts."_

"That's it. That must be where he made those cyclobots." 

_"What are you going to do?"_

"Check it out, of course. See if he's there." 

_"Dick, this guy is dangerous. You're in a strange city. Don't go alone."_

"Don't worry, as soon as they find Eric and Wes, I'll have four Rangers with me." 

There was a brief pause, Bruce's voice sounding reluctant as he answered. _"Good luck, then. Keep in touch."_ Another moment of silence before he went on. _"Let me know if there's anything else I can do."_

Dick could hear the undercurrent of anxiety in his voice, knew Bruce was worried but unwilling to show it, afraid it would be taken as a lack of trust again. Bruce could be infuriating, hard to understand and harder to deal with. But they were family, not by blood but by some connection that ran even deeper. Something born out of the similar tragedies that had created Batman and Robin. They loved each other, although neither ever seemed able to say it. The resentment of the past, anger at Bruce's sometimes distant, sometimes overprotective attitude seemed to fade away in that context. 

"Yeah. Thanks for the information." He hesitated for a moment. "Listen, I appreciate the help, Bruce. Bye." 

After hanging up he spent another moment staring out at the city again, this time seeing it in daylight, buildings gleaming in the sun. When this was over... maybe he could find time to visit the mansion. It had been too long. After a smile, he looked around for the coffeemaker again. 

* * *

Jen smiled. Rick was slumped over the workbench, head cradled on his arms, sound asleep. She nudged Alex and pointed. He looked up from his concentration on the time detector, his face lightening for a moment. 

"Feel like joining him? You look tired." He kept his voice low. 

"Not until we're finished," she said softly. "We don't know what's happening to Wes and Eric." 

"I know." He bent over his work again. 

Jen turned her attention back to the instrument readout she was monitoring. After a few moments her vision blurred. She felt her eyes closing and pulled herself awake again with a jerk. 

"Jen, I think we both need to take a break." 

She sighed. She hated to delay finding Wes and Eric, even for a moment, but she would do them no good fast asleep. "Good idea. Let's take a walk outside." 

They got up and started out, back towards the building entrance. She saw Alex glance at her face, his expression neutral, but she could see the concern. They moved in silence until they reached the walkway outside the building door and paused, blinking in the strong morning sunlight. 

"Alex -- can you stay after we get Wes and Eric back? Just for a little while?" She asked without any real expectation that he would say yes, but seeing him again had brought back some of the homesickness she had almost gotten over. She wanted time, to talk, catch up on each other's lives, for him to tell her how her friends were doing. 

"I'm sorry, Jen, but you know I can't. Have to minimize contact. Too many people have seen me already." 

"I wish Lucas, Trip, and Katie could have come." 

"They would have liked to. But for the same reason..." 

"Time Force wanted to send the minimum number of people." 

"Right." 

She hesitated, then decided to ask it. "Alex, why did you come on this assignment yourself?" 

"Why? Why not?" He smiled as she lifted her eyebrows. "All right. I wanted to see you. See how you're doing. Pulled a little rank." After a pause he went on softly. "Jen -- are you happy here?" 

She looked up, smiling slightly. "It's an adjustment. There's been some problems, but just normal ones. Yes, I'm happy." 

"Good. I'm glad." 

"What about you? How are you doing?" 

"Great. Rachel and I have been together for a few months now, and things are good. I've been promoted to commander." 

"Really? Congratulations. I'm a detective now in the Silver Hills police." 

"I know." 

"All in the history files, huh?" She paused again, licking her lips with a trace of nervousness. "Wes and I are engaged." 

"That's wonderful, Jen." He smiled and looked out into the sunlight. "Strange. We broke up a long time ago. I'm with Rachel now. You're with Wes, and I hope you'll be happy. But I still feel..." 

"A little jealous? A little... wondering what it would have been like, if we hadn't been separated, if we had gotten married like we planned?" 

"Yes." He looked back at her, still smiling. "How'd you know?" 

"That's what _I_ felt, when you mentioned Rachel." 

"Human nature, I guess." 

"We loved each other. Part of that will always be there." Jen ran her fingers through her hair and sighed. 

"When are you getting married?" 

"We haven't decided yet. We've haven't decided a lot of things, where to live and..." Her mood changed abruptly as worry came flooding back. She turned away, trying not to let Alex see her expression of pain. 

"We'll have those coordinates very soon, Jen. He'll be fine." His voice and his hand on her shoulder were gentle. 

"Do you really think so?" She laughed at herself, inwardly. Just like a child, seeking someone to tell her everything would be all right. 

"I'm sure of it." He smiled. "We'd better get back and wake Rick up. Go back to work." 

"Yes. Thanks, Alex." 

* * *

An hour later, Nightwing entered the familiar laboratory at Bio-Lab that had become their center of operations. A few workers moved around the room, still yawning in the early morning, working on the job of cleaning up after the cyclobot attack. Much of the debris had been cleared away. 

He watched Rick, Alex, and Jen working over a machine that vaguely resembled a small television. Alex smiled briefly, accentuating his amazing resemblance to Wes. Alan Collins and Steve Miller sat not far away, also watching them and quietly talking. Both Jen and Mr. Collins looked hopeful, undoubtedly looking forward to a reunion with her fiancé and his son. 

Only one person was missing. There was no one waiting anxiously for Eric. He took a few steps closer and beckoned Steve. "Where's Eric's girlfriend?" he asked. "She was supposed to be looking at the computer systems." 

"I think she left pretty late last night. Must not be here yet. She's not exactly a morning person." 

"Gaby?" Rick looked up. "She came by before she left. Said she'd be back early. We're almost done here; someone should call her, let her know what's going on." 

"I want a report on those computers, too," Collins said. "Steve, call her, tell her to get in here." 

"Yes, sir." With a salute, he left rapidly. 

"Between the three of us, we've almost gotten it repaired. Should have the time-space coordinates in a few hours." Rick beamed at them, happiness almost wiping away the exhaustion he must be feeling after working all night. 

"Yes, this is similar to our temporal tracking devices, but with some features I've never seen before." Alex smiled again, his own tired face brightening. "Not that I'm an expert… but it should be no problem translating the data and finding the right time. We should have them home this afternoon." 

"That's wonderful," Collins said. 

"Yes, don't worry, Mr. Collins -- Alan." There was an expression on Jen's face Nightwing couldn't quite interpret as she smiled at Alex before the three of them got back to work. Not for the first time, he wondered exactly what relationship she had with Alex, a man who looked so much like her fiancé. Seemed like a strange situation. 

He had gotten another cup of coffee from a helpful technician and was letting his mind wander when a voice behind him brought his attention back. Steve, his face grim and worried as he reported back to Collins. 

"Sir, Gaby's not answering her phone. She's not in her office. She signed out late last night. Her car's in the parking lot, but she didn't sign in this morning." 

A missing person, something familiar, something he could handle better than robots and time travel. "Show me where her car is," he asked. 

They left quickly, Collins' concerned gaze following them out. Nightwing ran the usual gauntlet of curious stares as Steve led him outside into the lot, almost filled with vehicles now, pointing out a small black car. 

"The engine's cold…" he murmured to himself, pressing a hand against the hood and then stepping back to look around. "It's probably been here since last night. Could she have gotten a ride with someone?" 

"There was no one else who left at that time. And why would she leave her car?" 

"Engine trouble, maybe… she could have taken a cab…" 

"The guard would have seen her if she came back to call for a cab." 

"What's this?" He bent to retrieve a handbag from the pavement, almost hidden under the car. "This is hers, isn't it?" 

"Yeah, I think so." Steve's eyes had widened. Now they narrowed. 

"No woman tosses her bag on the ground and runs off into the night. Not willingly. That guy Norman -- you said he had a crush on her, didn't you?" 

"Yeah. Exactly what I was thinking." His lips thinned. "During the attack in the lab, I heard him say, 'Get her.' Thought he wanted the cyclobots to stop Jen, but..." 

"Why don't you check out her apartment, see if you find anything." 

"Okay." Steve hesitated. "Should we tell the others?" 

"I -- maybe not yet. Let them concentrate on getting Eric and Wes back. I'm going to check something out, then maybe we'll know more." 

"Okay." Steve eyed him. "If you have a lead, I want in." 

"It's better and faster if I go alone. I need you to check Gaby's apartment." He smiled and rested a hand briefly on Steve's shoulder. "It may be nothing. Don't worry, I'll be in touch." 

* * *

Eric was worse, lying in his spot by the fire, eyes closed, breathing heavily. Wes took one look at his flushed, sweaty face and felt a chill of alarm go through him. He set down the food he had brought and went to the stream that ran through their cave. Taking out his handkerchief, he dipped it into the cool water, went back to his friend, and began to dab at his forehead. 

Eric's eyes opened, fever-bright, hazy for a moment before they focused. "What the hell are you doing?" he rasped. 

"Trying to cool you off." 

"Gonna take more than that." He took the handkerchief, wiped his face, then grimaced as he pushed himself into a sitting position, propped against a boulder, and lifted his arm across his lap. It was swollen, the hand discolored, angry red streaks reaching almost to his shoulder. The sight made Wes's stomach turn over. He felt a moment's gratitude that Eric's jacket hid his chest wound. 

Hastily he looked away and picked up the small hunk of meat he had been carrying. "Here. Breakfast," he said, offering it. 

Eric regarded it with distaste. "Roast leg of dinosaur? No thanks. I'm not hungry anyway." 

"You've got to keep up your strength." 

"Wes…" Eric's voice softened. "Don't waste it on me. That dinosaur that bit me must have had some kind of poison or infection in its mouth. The way I've gotten sick so fast... Unless someone comes for us soon, I'm not going to make it." 

Wes looked up, into his face. Eric, who had always seemed so strong, so confident, now looked pale, tired, weak, and hopeless. For the first time it sank in to him that his friend might die here, they all might, with no one to help them, no one even to mourn them. And that there was nothing he could do, even with the Ranger powers. He blinked and looked away. "No. We're all going to make it," he said, not believing it himself. 

Eric smiled faintly. "Don't look so tragic, Wes, at least not on my account. I've had a good life the last couple of years. Better than I ever thought I'd have. Besides, unless you guys can get out of here, I may turn out to be the lucky one." 

"You could still get better." 

A soft snort. "Not a chance. I need a hospital and massive doses of antibiotics. Or that medical gizmo your friends had." He gazed down at the dirt floor, his face tightening slightly. "I just wish we knew the others were all right… Gaby, Jen, Michael…" His eyes lifted back to Wes. "If you do get back, and I don't -- if you find them -- tell Gaby… just tell her I said goodbye." 

"Don't… don't say things like that." 

"Why not? It's just facing facts." 

"No… I'm not going to let you die." 

"What are you going to do about it?" Another hint of a smile, then Eric was silent, staring at the floor again, his face somber. "I never said I was sorry, did I? About the way I acted, when we were here before." 

"You don't have to." 

Eric glanced at him, his expression unreadable. "You really thought I was going to leave you here, didn't you?" 

Wes smiled. "Just because you waved goodbye and flew off into the horizon, leaving me in the middle of an exploding volcano? Why would I think that?" 

"All of you thought I was some kind of heartless, irresponsible maniac. And maybe I can't blame you." 

"_I_ didn't." 

A shadow of discomfort showed on Eric's face now. "Frankly, I _wanted_ to leave you. I thought you were such a self-righteous, interfering little jerk..." 

"Hey! I was never _little_." 

To Wes's surprise, Eric laughed at that, for a moment. "Maybe for a second I seriously considered it. But I just couldn't do it." 

Wes smiled. "See. I thought so." 

"I was surprised you didn't seem to hold a grudge." 

"You came back, didn't you? Risked your life to save me from that volcano." 

"I guess." Eric was silent for a while, staring into the fire, his face gloomy again, before he went on softly. "I'll give the morpher to Doug or Tony, before... That way you'll still have the Quantum Ranger powers." Wes stared at him, shaken. Eric leaned his head back against the stone, eyes closing, and his voice came again -- so low Wes could hardly hear it. "I always thought I'd die alone, with no one to care that I was gone. Back when I had no one… it didn't seem very important. I want you to know I'm grateful for that, to you and your father. You made me feel like I almost had a family. You've both been great, never acted like it was just because of the morpher..." 

"It never was." 

Eric looked at his face again. "I know I'm not the kind of guy you would have chosen as a friend." 

"What? That's not true. I tried to make friends with you in school, remember?" 

"And I acted like a jerk." 

"Maybe we're partners because of the morpher. But it has nothing to do with us being friends." 

Eric's eyes held his until he blinked and looked away. "You, and your father, and Gaby... Now that I have something to lose… I'm scared, Wes." 

"Eric, please... don't just give up." Wes swallowed, hard, and took a moment to steady his voice before continuing. "I'm not letting you go without a fight. But I need _you_ to fight, too." He bent to look intently into his friend's face. "You took the morpher, wouldn't give it up... Helped us beat Ransik, kept the Guardians together." He took a breath. "I always thought you were so tough. You can beat this. At least _try_." 

Eric's voice was distant. "Ransik... it wasn't easy, trying to get Bio-Lab back on its feet, keeping the Guardians together, helping the whole city rebuild... I'll be honest, there were times I felt like quitting. And then -- then there was TransGenics, Lorent, Conwing... I'm _tired_ of it, Wes. I'm not as tough as you think." His eyes raised and met Wes's, and he smiled slightly again. "You're right. I'm not giving up -- but -- I just don't see a way out." 

"It's okay." Wes smiled as best he could, and reached to squeeze Eric's shoulder. "Someone'll come for us. Someone's got to come." 

* * *

TBC... 


	10. Predators

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine. 

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references. 

Reviews are appreciated, please take a moment to leave one. 

The Time Tunnel

* * *

* * *

Predators

* * *

"I always liked you." Norman smiled. 

"Then why are you doing this?" Gaby asked. She fought down panic, trying to keep the tinge of hysteria out of her voice. 

"I just want us to be together." 

"But you have me locked up." She tried smiling herself. "That's not very nice. That doesn't make me want to like you." 

It was a comfortable enough prison, but still a prison. After he and his robots had kidnapped her last night, they had driven for what felt like miles. She could see nothing from inside the van, and had quickly lost track of the turns they had taken. When they finally stopped, the cyclobots had dragged her out, into a large, darkened building, and through empty corridors. Along the walls she had glimpsed doors and windows into laboratories, most of them looking dusty and abandoned. Then she had been shoved rudely into a large office. Fortunately there was a bathroom adjoining it, and a fairly comfortable sofa, not that she had been able to sleep. Even more fortunately, before locking the door Norman had announced that she needed time to recover, and left her alone. Until now. 

She had been frightened when he opened the door in the morning, carrying a tray of food. She was still frightened as she tried to eat, hoping to keep him calm, to distract him from whatever he intended to do for as long as possible. And from the way he looked at her, she had a fair idea of what those intentions were. 

"But I had to bring you here, had to lock you up," he said, sounding almost plaintive. "You never noticed me before. I want to show you how much I've changed." 

"Well, you look different…" 

"Oh, the hair, and the skin. And my eyes." He smiled. "That's part of it." The smile faded. "No one noticed me before. I might as well have been a piece of furniture. No girl ever looked twice at me, including you." 

"But… that's not true. Plenty of people noticed you." 

"_You_ didn't. None of the girls did." His voice had taken on a bitter, angry tinge. 

"Well, you never made any effort-" 

He seemed not to hear her. "I just -- faded into the background. But now, everyone's going to know who I am. Everyone's going to _respect_ me." He glared at her, fists clenching. 

Nervously, she tried smiling again. "But -- you hardly ever even talked to me. If you think I didn't notice you -- well, we didn't really know each other. I'm surprised you noticed _me_." 

"I wanted to go out with you for a long time. We would have been great together. But then you started up with _him_." 

"Him?" she asked tentatively. 

"Eric!" He came closer again. "He's not good enough for you. You're a smart girl. Educated. You deserve someone like me, someone brilliant… Eric's just a dropout, a security guard. He's _nothing_." 

"Eric's _not_ nothing." Indignation firmed her voice and narrowed her eyes. "You don't know him." 

Norman sneered. "I know enough." He reached down to grab her wrist, pulling her up to face him. "_I'm_ the right guy for you, Gaby. And I'm going to show you." 

"What do you mean?" Fear brushed over her again. 

"I'll prove to you I'm better than him," he said softly, moving his grip to her arms. "I'll show you what I've done. What I'm going to do." He smiled, a twisted grimace of vindictive hatred. "Eric is gone, he can't help you. He can't help himself. And if he ever comes back... I'll get rid of him forever." 

* * *

Wes sighed heavily and took a deep breath of fresh air. It was a relief to get out of that dark, dismal cave, even if it was only for a few minutes. The four of them stood outside the cave entrance. He stepped closer to Eric, watching him closely as he swayed unsteadily before sitting on a fallen tree trunk, seeing annoyance cross his pale, tense face at the inspection. 

"You should have stayed inside," he said. 

"Told you, I want some fresh air. Don't want to just sit around waiting... Besides, I can help keep an eye on those two. Do something useful, while I still can." He got up and started after Tony and Doug, who had moved several yards away to the cliff edge, and were looking down at the valley below. 

Wes followed him and joined them, looking out. It was a magnificent view, the day bright and sunny, the humidity lower than usual, untouched prehistoric rain forest stretching out for miles. He heard a faint cry and looked up to see a pterodactyl lazily wheeling through the sky. The smell of vegetation drifted over him. For a few moments the knot of fear and dread in his gut loosened, and he smiled at the lush, natural beauty surrounding them. 

There was movement in the distance, he spotted a huge dinosaur, bulky body on short, massive legs, long graceful neck ending in a tiny head, reaching into the treetops as it fed, long thick tail held behind it as balance. It took a slow, ponderous step. A group of smaller creatures darted through the trees, moving out of its way. Two legs, small arms, big heads that were all jaws and teeth, about the height of a man. The same animals that had attacked them. 

"They're still here," Tony said softly. He glanced at Doug. "What do you think they are?" 

"Some kind of Tyrannosaurus or raptor. There were a lot of species, different sizes but basically similar. The biggest and most famous was the Tyrannosaurus Rex." 

"Nobody thought dinosaurs hunted in packs like that." 

"They thought so in our time," Wes said. "And obviously it's true." 

"Just makes them more dangerous," Eric commented. 

"Dangerous or not, we need food," Tony said. "Doug and I found a trail down the cliff. One of us would stand watch at the top while the other one goes down into the forest. Of course, that was before these raptors or whatever they are showed up. They're smarter and faster than anything we've come up against before." 

"But our morphers should be able to stop them long enough for you to get back up here," Wes said. 

Doug turned away from the view with a frown. "Hopefully. I don't want to get near those things again. I guess we might as well go now, while we know where they are." 

They led the way to a small thicket on the cliff edge. As they pushed through, Wes saw the beginning of a steep trail, winding its way down the slope between rocks and a scattering of bushes and ferns to the trees below. It looked difficult, but passable for anyone reasonably athletic. Anyone healthy and with two good hands, anyway… 

Eric had found a rock to sit on and was slumped, looking exhausted and dejected. Wes gave him another concerned glance. "You should be lookout. Stay up here. If you see anything, you can call me with the morphers." 

Eric seemed about to argue for a moment, but then he only nodded. "All right. Just be ready to move if I call. I'll make sure you have a clear line of retreat." 

"Good." Wes, Tony, and Doug moved out, not talking as they started down, all their attention given to picking their way. It proved to be not as bad as it looked, and they made good time. Halfway down, Wes stopped long enough to try to spot the pack of raptors again, unsuccessfully, but he could see little through the trees at this height. After several minutes they reached the bottom and crossed a small open area. 

"Over here." Tony pointed, walked a few yards, and bent to pick up a large pod from the ground. It was almost two feet long, and looked something like a huge pinecone. "A seedpod. Most of the inside of this is edible," he said. "Enough for a couple of days." 

"And here." Doug was under a small tree, the ground around him littered with what looked like walnuts. "Take as many of these as you can, and we can get out of here." Wes followed his example and began to fill his pockets. 

_"Wes!"_ Eric's voice abruptly rang from Wes's morpher, startling all of them. _"There's another pack, coming right for you! Get out of there now!"_

"Shit. Come on!" Wes paused long enough to see Tony and Doug start running, Tony still clutching the seedpod. Then he raised his morpher, touched the button, seeing the light cascading over him, the red and white Ranger suit replacing his dirty uniform. He summoned his blaster and followed his companions. 

* * *

From across the street he looked at it. Norman Ryder's factory. Another abandoned building, dark, dusty, and unused, at least on the surface. Briefly Nightwing wondered why bad guys always seemed to go for places like this. And why there seemed to be so many of these old, empty buildings waiting for them. Then he dismissed the thought as unimportant. Just one precaution to take before he went in. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed the familiar number. 

"Babs?" 

_"Dick. Bruce said he called you."_

"He did. Told me about Norman's chemical factory. Thanks for the help." 

_"But you're not calling just to say thanks."_

"No." He smiled. She knew him so well. "The situation has changed. I think Ryder has kidnapped a woman. Eric's girlfriend. I have to go after him now." 

Her voice quickened with concern. _"What about the Rangers? Are they going with you?"_

"Wes and Eric are still missing. Jen and Alex are still working on finding them. They can't take time out from that. I'm going in alone." 

_"Dick, let me call Bruce. He could be there in a couple of hours…"_

"No. If she's here, Ryder's had her since last night. I think he took her because he has the hots for her. That situation can't wait either." He paused for a moment. "If you don't hear from me in half an hour, call the Guardians. And tell Bruce." Ignoring her protest, he hung up. 

* * *

"See! I did all of this! All of it!" Norman swept an arm around the large laboratory he had pulled Gaby into. 

She stared, impressed, but not in a pleasant way. It was a factory, rows of machines lining the walls, cyclobots operating them, the clanking of metal parts and the smell of oil filling the air. She watched the finishing touches being put on a robot arm, which was then carried to a robot body on a table between the machines. A cyclobot attached the arm. It was an assembly line. Cyclobots building cyclobots. No wonder he had so many of them. 

"Yes," he said. "This is where I build them. I had some problems with the controllers at first -- the computers. Took me a few months to analyze the programming, and duplicate it. But I figured out how to make them completely from scratch. Now the only limit is how fast I can get the parts. Bought some, raided the Bio-Lab warehouses for more." 

"Is that why you attacked the lab? For parts?" 

He shrugged, grinning. "That was part of it… Mostly I wanted to show them. They forced me to quit. Never respected me. Now they know better." His grip on her arm tightened. "And I wanted _you_… but you got caught in that time machine." 

She stared at him. "Yes," he went on. "I know about that. I've been studying it. Soon I'll build my own time machine, a better one than _that_…" He pulled her to a workbench away from the manufacturing equipment. She recognized Rick's coffeemaker-like machine at once. 

"But -- how did you do all this?" she asked. "I mean… you weren't a robotics expert. You were a chemist, weren't you?" 

"That's right. Maybe you _did_ notice me, a little." His eyes were suddenly hot, a spark of something in them that made her skin crawl. "I was a biochemist, specializing in drug reactions and genetic engineering. Had a degree in electronics, too. I was always smart, but…" He grinned. "I worked on the Venomark serum, the stuff that cured that plague we had when the mutants were here. Until Collins made us drop the research. 

"But I didn't give up. Kept my notes, and a sample. Then, about a year ago -- about the time you started at Bio-Lab -- we did some research on mutants. Some women who had been mutated artificially, by a chemical treatment. Again, we were ordered to drop it, and again I kept some of the tissue samples for myself." 

"What does that have to do with cyclobots?" 

He smiled again. "People never noticed me, never appreciated me. So _ordinary_, so plain, just fading into the background… I hated it. I isolated the mutating agent from those samples. Figured out that it would change me. Make me even smarter, stronger. Make me so special everyone would notice. Figured out how to neutralize the side effects with the Venomark serum. Used it on myself." 

"What? Is that what turned you…" 

"Purple and silver? Yes. I didn't expect that. First my hair turned white... Tried to cover it with hair dye, but it doesn't stick, comes off in a few hours. My eyes and skin have changed too, in the last few days... but it was worth it." His voice was intense, his face alight. "I _did_ get smarter. _ Much_ smarter. And stronger. So what if I look unusual? _Everyone's_ going to notice me now. And you… you're going to love me." 

"Norman, you can't just _make_ someone love you." 

"Can't I?" He pulled her closer, smiling. 

She twisted her arm, trying to pull free. "Let me go!" 

"Gaby, we're meant for each other. Face it." 

"You're crazy!" 

His eyes glimmered with anger and a different passion. "There's no use fighting it. You can't get away." He held her close, twisting her arms behind her back, pressing her against his body, his face coming down to kiss her. 

"Let go, you _freak_!" she shouted, relieved for an instant as he released her, still keeping his grip on her wrist, then regretting her words as she saw his face flame with rage. 

"_Freak_? You don't want me? Fine, maybe you'd rather go back into the past again!" He yanked at her arm, dragging her to the bench with the time machine. With his other hand he flipped a switch. The machine hummed to life. Gaby tried to free herself again as he grabbed her by the shoulders, pulling her nearer. "Last chance, Gaby," Norman murmured in her ear. "I've turned the machine on... I can send you back millions of years, and no one will ever find you. Give me what I want or you'll be dinosaur food." 

They both looked up, Norman hissing in surprise, as darkness suddenly formed in the air above the machine, swiftly resolving into a black and violet swirl. Norman fell back, dragging her with him, as it swept down into a whirling cone. She struggled, both of them staring as the timehole faded. 

* * *

Whoever thought of dinosaurs as slow and sluggish couldn't be more wrong. Wes stopped in alarm as he saw three of the raptor-like hunters spring out of the trees into the open area at the base of the slope, cutting them off. Then he charged forward, firing, knocking them down before they could reach Tony and Doug. 

"I've got you covered! Go!" he shouted, turning to see more pursuing, still more emerging from the forest. How could they move so fast? He fired again and again, trying to drive them back, but they had the three humans surrounded, moving in on one side as soon as he was facing the other way. 

Slowly they worked their way toward the path, Wes turning in a circle. He saw and heard more blasts, powerful ones, and looked up to see Eric in his Quantum Ranger form coming down the path, pausing to shoot at their attackers. The dinosaurs fell back with angry roars, clearing the way to safety. 

"Go on!" Wes said, pushing Tony and Doug ahead. He turned, moving backwards after them, keeping up a barrage of energy blasts. A glance over his shoulder showed Eric about halfway down, but faltering, falling to his hands and knees, then raising an arm to fire past him. He looked back to see a dinosaur that had gotten too close fall to the ground. 

At the bottom of the path, he looked up. Tony and Doug, ahead of him, had reached Eric, who was on his knees, still firing steadily to cover their retreat. They reached him, he waved them on, they started for the top again. Wes turned back to fire at two of the creatures that seemed about to follow him, and began to climb. 

He noticed a strange sound, glanced up, and saw nothing but bushes and rocks, the rest of the path blocked from his view. Eric had stopped shooting. After pausing for a few more blasts, Wes was on his way again. The dinosaurs seemed to know when they were defeated; when he paused to look back, the last of them were disappearing into the trees. 

Tony and Doug were waiting just outside the cave, their faces tensing as they saw him. 

"Where's Eric?" Doug asked. 

"Isn't he up here?" 

"No, he was on the path the last time we saw him." 

"You didn't pass him on your way up?" Tony demanded. 

"No." Wes stared back at the cliff edge. "We've got to find him." 

* * *

"That's it. We've got it." Alex smiled wide, looking up at her, his face so happy, despite his obvious exhaustion, his expression so alight, that for a moment Jen blinked and looked away. When he smiled like that, he seemed so much like Wes. 

"Are you sure?" Rick asked. "You can find them now?" 

"Yes," Jen answered him. "If your machine took them to these coordinates, we'll find them." She stood up. "And we'd better get going." 

"I assume you're going to insist on coming with me," Alex said. 

"You assume right." They exchanged another smile as he got up. 

"Good luck," Rick called after them as they headed for the door. 

A quick walk took them outside again, into the sun and a warm, gentle breeze. Jen blinked in the light, raising her arm, ready to use her morpher to summon her flyer for the trip to the beach. Then it would be a quick flight through time -- and then... Wes would be waiting. She hoped. And Eric, of course. 

"Tell me again they'll be all right," she said softly. 

"Of course they will. Let's get going." Next to her, Alex raised his morpher. 

* * *

TBC... 


	11. Unhappy Return

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine. 

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references. 

Reviews are appreciated, please take a moment to leave one. 

The Time Tunnel

* * *

* * *

Unhappy Return

* * *

It had all seemed to happen so fast, partially, Eric realized, because he was weakened by fever and pain. Dazed, he looked around. He had been on that steep, narrow path, trying to get back up, away from those dinosaurs. Tony and Doug had passed him -- Wes had been behind him. Then purple darkness had swirled over him. Another timehole, he realized. 

Now the path, the cliff, the sun, the forest, the dinosaurs -- and Wes, Tony, and Doug -- were all gone. He was on his hands and knees, in a building, under artificial light, surrounded by machinery and the sounds of clanking metal. He pushed up to a kneeling position. Then he saw the two other people in the room. 

Three emotions ran through him; a surge of joy at seeing Gaby, a burst of anger at seeing her in the arms of another man, and then rage as he realized she wasn't there willingly, that she was struggling to free herself while staring at him, eyes opening wide in shock. 

"Eric!" she exclaimed. 

"Let go of her!" he roared, getting to his feet and starting forward. 

The man holding her backed up, dragging her with him. Then he grinned. "You want her?" he snarled. "Here! She's worthless anyway!" He pushed Gaby hard, sending her falling to the floor. 

Eric raised the Quantum Defender and aimed with a growl of rage, trying to get himself under control. The surge of adrenaline was fading despite his anger, he began to feel lightheaded, and saw his hand shaking. He moved closer to Gaby, who was sitting up, looking dazed. "You okay?" he asked. Without thinking, he held out his left hand to help her up, then flinched and gasped in pain when she took it. 

"Eric, are you all right?" she asked anxiously, letting go and standing on her own. 

"My arm's a little banged up." 

"How did you get here?" 

"Beats the shit out of me." 

"The time machine must have brought you." It was the strange man. Eric took another look, deciding 'strange' was an excellent word to describe a man with silver hair and violet skin. 

"Who the hell is that?" he asked Gaby. "What's going on here?" 

"Alex came and got us, brought us home. This is the guy who built the cyclobots. Norman Ryder." 

"Ryder? I remember you." He stared. "What the hell happened to you?" 

Norman grinned, looking very confident for a man with a blaster aimed at him. "I'm better than before, can't you see it? New and improved." 

"Okay..." Eric replied dubiously. "How did I get here?" 

"With that." Norman nodded at the machine behind Eric. "The time machine. When I turned it back on, it must have opened a timehole to the last time period it was set for." 

"What happened to Wes?" 

Norman shrugged. "Obviously, he was left behind." 

"What are _you_ doing here?" Eric asked Gaby. 

"Norman kidnapped me," she explained with a glare. "That's one of the reasons he attacked Bio-Lab, he was after me. Last night he grabbed me when I left to go home." 

"Why? Or do I even need to ask?" Anger steadied his aim again. "I saw the way you used to look at Gaby. The women at Bio-Lab used to complain about you. You stared at them. Now you've moved up to kidnapping." 

"They were all too stupid to appreciate me." 

He glanced at Gaby's face. "Did he hurt you?" 

"Not _yet_." The anger in her voice told him all he needed to know. 

"Bastard," he muttered, turning back to Norman. "You're going to use that time machine again. Bring Wes and the others back." 

Norman grinned maliciously. "I don't think so. In case you hadn't noticed, you're standing in _my_ factory. Surrounded by _my_ cyclobots. I'm not bringing anyone here." 

"And this is _my_ blaster aimed at your head. Do it." 

"Look around you." 

Eric looked. He felt Gaby press closer to him as he saw what seemed to be at least two dozen cyclobots coming up on them from behind. "I can still get you first," he growled. 

"But they'll get _you_. And what about Gaby? The cyclobots will attack both of you if I don't stop them. How long can you protect her?" 

He was right. Eric cast another look around, seeing the circle of robots closing in. 

* * *

It was easy to get inside; he found an unlocked window in minutes, forced it open and slid through. It was as dusty as it looked from the outside. Nightwing found a hallway and began to explore, moving silently, getting that feeling of unreality he often had when alone in some forgotten corner of the city, looking for a deadly enemy, knowing that at any moment he might be fighting for his life. 

On a lower floor he began to find signs of occupancy. The floor had been cleaned, the occasional hallway light was on. Then he heard the sounds of machinery, metal on metal, a clanking and tapping. Light showed through a partially open doorway. As he crept closer, he heard the voices. 

A man -- Eric's voice, he realized with surprise -- a woman -- Gaby Butler -- and another man. He paused outside the doorway to listen, then cautiously peered in. They were all there, Eric in his Quantum Ranger suit, Gaby at his side, facing the second man with blaster drawn. Nightwing blinked, wondering if the lighting was playing tricks on him. The other man had silver hair with a purple sheen and pale violet skin. 

It was too noisy to hear what they were saying, but the tone didn't sound friendly. As he drew back and tried to decide what to do, he heard the snap and sizzle of blaster beams. He dropped to the floor and eased forward for another look. Then he heard an agonized cry, in Eric's voice, closely followed by another, a woman's scream of terror. 

* * *

"Look, what's that?" 

Wes looked up to follow Tony's pointing finger. They had spent what felt like hours in a desperate but vain search for Eric, Wes going up and down the path several times, Tony and Doug walking along the cliff edge looking down. So far with no results. 

Now he gazed into the sky, wondering what else could possibly go wrong. But what he saw filled him with hope. An egg shape, with a conical propulsion attachment on one end... it was familiar, wonderfully familiar. 

"It's a timeship!" he shouted. "They've come for us!" He waved frantically. The ship veered and slowed, passing over them, then circled. 

Wes's morpher bleeped. _"Wes?"_ it said, in Jen's voice. 

"Jen!" He closed his eyes, unable to speak for a second as his throat constricted in joy and relief. "Jen... Oh, God, it's good to hear your voice!" 

_"Believe me, I know. Are you all right?"_

"Yes. Yes, I'm fine." 

_"We're coming down. Clear a space for us."_

He obeyed, beckoning Tony and Doug away from the area between the cave and the cliff. The ship circled lower, then hovered and lowered itself to the ground. Wes demorphed and waited impatiently, until the door opened. 

Jen appeared, spotted him and came running. In another moment she was in his arms, holding him tightly. He pulled her closer, pressed his face into her hair, and kissed her, not even noticing the other occupant of the vessel until he was standing near them. 

"Alex!" he said. "You came after us. Thanks." 

"Would have been here sooner, but it took a while to get the right coordinates." 

"I guess you got Jen and the others too." 

"Yes," Jen answered. "Alex came for us yesterday." 

"Are all of you all right?" 

"We're fine." 

Wes saw her eyes and Alex's move past him, and swung around. "Oh, right. This is Tony Newman and Doug Phillips." He gestured. "And this is Jen Scotts, my fiancée, and Alex Drake." 

Tony and Doug were doing the usual double take, looking from him to Alex's almost identical face, except for his darker hair and eyes. "Are you two brothers?" Doug asked. 

"No. We're relatives, but it's a long story." 

"Tony Newman and Doug Phillips." Jen smiled. "So Rick's machine worked after all. It found you." 

"What?" Tony asked. "Who's Rick?" 

"That's another long story... Where's Eric?" Jen took another look around. "Is he all right?" 

"I don't know," Wes said, his happiness fading. "He was injured pretty badly, by a dinosaur. Then, maybe an hour ago, he just disappeared. We've got to find him." 

* * *

"All right, you win. Just keep them back, and we'll go." Eric began to retreat toward a door he saw in one wall, Gaby next to him. 

"Too late." Norman moved, too fast for a normal person. He was suddenly behind one of the manufacturing machines, and there was a blaster in his hand. He fired. 

Eric stepped in front of Gaby, taking the shot, feeling the electric sensation ripple painfully through him. "Run!" he shouted at her. "Find a place to hide!" As she obeyed, dashing between the robots -- which, to his relief, ignored her -- he turned back to Norman. As another beam stabbed toward him, he dropped to the floor, letting it pass over him, and fired back. 

But as long as he was in the open, he was at a disadvantage. Another shot hit him. He started to roll back up to his feet, and gasped in pain as his injured arm contacted the floor, sending him clumsily collapsing on his face. A third blast struck him. And the cyclobots were on him, roughly yanking him up, twisting the Defender from his grip. A cry of pain was wrenched from him as a robot hand clamped on his bad arm. 

Black spots began to dance before his eyes. Norman was standing in front of him, grinning viciously, raising his blaster, aiming carefully. He heard Gaby scream as the beam hit him, and then felt the shock as he demorphed. When he opened his eyes, he was looking up, cyclobots surrounding him, and the blaster pointing at him again. 

He tried to get up as Gaby ran past him, dashing at Norman, grabbing his arm and struggling with him for the blaster. Norman snarled and backhanded her across the face. With a cry she flew back, collided with a cyclobot and collapsed limply. 

A dark shape shot over him, becoming a man in black and midnight blue, attacking Norman as Eric's vision clouded, the spots growing before his eyes, the sounds of machinery and combat blurring together until darkness claimed him. 

* * *

Nightwing saw Eric's body sparkle and warp, leaving him back in human form, still moving but apparently unable to get up. Movement caught his eye, and he saw Gaby run toward her boyfriend and his attacker. Without conscious thought, he started for them, ducking between cyclobots, reaching them just as the purple man struck her away. 

He leaped over Eric, crashing into purple-man, grabbing at his blaster. They wrestled briefly, but his opponent was strong, much stronger than he looked. It took only an instant to pull out an escrima stick, another instant to bring it sharply down on the wrist holding the weapon. The purple man cursed, dropped it, and pushed Nightwing away, sending him down to one knee. 

He stayed there for a moment, taking a quick look at Eric and Gaby. Eric appeared to be unconscious. Gaby was all right, she was scrambling over the floor to crouch at Eric's side. Nightwing returned his attention to the enemy. 

"Norman Ryder, I presume?" 

"That's right. I remember you. You hit me." 

"Not hard enough." He rose to his feet. "Excuse me for asking a personal question, but why are you silver and purple?" 

"Because I'm evolving... I've found a way to make myself better." Norman smiled and moved a step closer. "I'm a mutant now. Strong. Stronger than you. I don't have to be afraid of you anymore." 

"Is that so?" 

"Yes, it's so. I'm faster, stronger, and smarter than any human now. I'm not just Norman Ryder anymore." 

"So who are you? Mutant Man?" Nightwing grinned, stepping to the side, away from the cyclobots. "Lavender Lad? The Silver Ryder?" 

Norman stepped back again, his face twisting with fury. "Cyclobots!" he shouted. The robots surrounding them stirred, and began to advance. 

"I thought you said you're not afraid of me," Nightwing mocked. "Why not fight me yourself?" 

Norman's face showed a flicker of uneasiness. "Why should I?" 

"Scared, Norman? You're not so tough." 

"No! I'm not scared!" He grinned again, savagely. "I'll show you." 

They both began to move, circling. The cyclobots stayed back, to Nightwing's relief, silently surrounding them. He moved closer, trying to judge how dangerous Norman really was. With a swift movement he feinted with the stick, sweeping it toward his opponent's head, then continued the motion into a spin and snapped a foot into the self-proclaimed mutant's stomach. Norman grunted, doubled over and staggered back. 

"Told you you're not so tough," he sneered. But Norman had already recovered. He charged forward with a growl of rage, grabbing at Nightwing, catching him in a clumsy but frighteningly powerful bear hug and bringing them both crashing to the floor. With another angry cry, he struck out with his fists, showing no skill but a speed that let him connect a couple of times and a strength that made the blows hurt. 

Nightwing brought his feet forward and kicked Norman in the chest, hard, breaking free. He rolled to his feet and backed away, then approached more cautiously, dodging as Norman charged forward again, swinging at him. Seeing an opening, he kicked him in the stomach again, then sent a hard punch into his face. 

To his surprise, after staggering back, Norman looked up with an angry snarl, obviously not badly hurt. Nightwing realized Norman's lack of skill didn't matter as long as he was so fast, and so strong. "Me and my big mouth," he muttered, realizing goading him into a fight might not have been such a good idea. 

But... the purple man was still bent over, clutching his belly, and shaking his head in evident pain. Maybe this fight was winnable after all. 

As he moved forward again, he saw Norman look past him and cry out angrily, "Stop her!" A quick glance showed Gaby dragging Eric's inert body toward the door, until a cyclobot grabbed her. "Can't let our audience leave, can we?" he said with a snarl. 

Nightwing was already moving, leaping into a midair kick aimed at Norman's head. With that disturbing speed the mutant avoided it, but Nightwing landed, bounced into another, spinning, kick, this time landing a solid blow. Norman staggered back. Nightwing pursued relentlessly, blocking a couple of fast but clumsy punches and snapping a fist to Norman's jaw, finally knocking him down. 

"Stop him!" Norman cried, glaring venomously, a hand to his face, as Nightwing felt hard metal fingers close on his arms. "This is over!" The cyclobots held him fast, ignoring his struggles as Norman fetched his blaster, aimed, and fired. 

* * *

"Where have you been?" Wes heard the anger in his own voice and cut himself off. It was really worry that was making him angry, not Alex. Even though he had disappeared for the last half hour, instead of helping with the search for Eric. 

"In the timeship. I've detected signs of another timehole. I think that's what happened to Eric." 

Wes stared at Alex. "Another timehole?" 

"You think he's gone though time again?" Tony said from beside him. "But how?" 

"I can't answer that. All I can say is that something was transported through time from here in the last couple of hours." 

"Wes, it's the only thing that makes sense," Doug said. "We've scoured every inch of that cliffside. Looked everywhere he might possibly be. He disappeared into thin air." 

"I agree. It's the only explanation," Jen said. 

"But -- where is he, then? When?" Wes asked. 

"I don't know," Alex answered gently. "It was a relatively low-power shift, and there's interference from the previous timeholes. I can't trace where it led. But he's not _here_ anymore." 

"How are we going to find him?" 

"I don't know, not for sure," he repeated, taking a deep breath. "Maybe he's back in 2003. There just no way to tell." 

"No…" Wes sat, slumping onto a boulder, sagging with exhaustion and hopelessness. "There must be a way to find him…" 

"Wes, we have to go back to 2003. He may be there." 

"And if he isn't, Jen? What do we do then?" 

"Wes is right," Tony said. "We know what it's like to be stranded in time. We've got to find him." 

"And soon," Doug added. "He's in bad shape. If he doesn't get medical help in a few days, it may be too late." 

"Damn it, I will _not_ lose my best friend like this…" Wes muttered. 

Jen knelt at his feet, looking up into his face and taking his hands in a firm and reassuring grasp. "Eric's _my_ friend too. We'll keep looking. We'll contact Time Force Command if we have to, see if they can help. But there's nothing more we can do here." 

"You're right." Wes got up, pulled her to her feet and kissed her briefly. "Let's go home." 

* * *

TBC... 


	12. Fire Fight

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine. 

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references. 

Reviews are appreciated, please take a moment to leave one. 

The Time Tunnel

* * *

* * *

Fire Fight

* * *

"Eric?" 

Fever, stiffness, pain in his arm and chest… Eric stirred, tried to move into a more comfortable position. A fresh stab of pain rewarded him. He opened his eyes to bright light and became aware of his surroundings. 

"Hi. Was wondering if you were going to wake up." 

He blinked, turned his head sharply toward the voice, and winced at another sharp pain as his wrist jerked against something hard. He was lying on carpeting, arms handcuffed behind his back. A few feet away a man in black with a V of midnight blue across his chest lay similarly bound. They were in what looked like an ordinary office, complete with desk and filing cabinets, late afternoon light slanting through dusty, wire-reinforced windows. 

"_You_?" Eric growled in surprise. "What the hell are you doing here?" 

Nightwing grinned. "Nice to see _you_ again, too," he said. "And the last I heard, you were dodging dinosaurs. How did you get here?" 

"I don't know. And I didn't dodge well enough." 

"Yeah, you look a little banged up." 

"A little. How long have I been out?" 

"Judging by the light, two or three hours. Just woke up myself." He gave Eric a look of concern. "You had me worried there for a minute." 

"Worry about how we're going to get out of here." Eric pulled cautiously at the cuffs. Then he felt it, fear tracing icy fingers through his gut. "My morpher's gone!" 

"Our friend Norman must have taken it." 

Another, sharper pang of fear as Eric looked around the room again. "Where's Gaby?" 

Nightwing sighed softly. "Norman probably has her too." 

"We've got to find them!" He yanked at the cuffs, gasping as they cut into his injured wrist. 

"Hey, hold on! Relax for a minute, and I'll get those off." Nightwing shifted position slightly, rolling with his back to Eric. A key appeared in his hand. After a few seconds, he was out of his cuffs and bending over Eric, freeing him also. 

"How did you do that?" 

"A handcuff key in my glove. Norman took my phone and some of my gadgets, but he missed the key." 

"I guess he's new at the bad guy business." 

"Lucky for us." He stood up and crossed to the door. "Locked. I'll need a little time to get it open." 

"No. I've got to find Gaby." Eric struggled to his feet. "We can kick it down." 

"Eric, that would make too much noise. Wait for me to pick the lock. We don't want those cyclobots to get us again." 

"He took Gaby because he wants... Who knows what he's doing to her right now?" 

"I know. But you don't look in any shape for a fight, not without your morpher. That leaves just me up against a crazy mutant and a building full of robots, and I'm not in the best condition either, after being blasted. Our only chance is to take him by surprise." He knelt to look closely at the door lock, glancing back up. "Believe me, I know how you feel." 

Eric's voice rose harshly. "How the hell would you know how I feel? It's not _your_ girlfriend that freak might be raping right now!" 

"No. But it's my girlfriend who's been in a wheelchair since one of our enemies shot her in the back. And I don't much like the idea of _any_ woman being raped." 

Eric blinked at him, sighed, and dropped into a chair, closing his eyes. "I'm sorry. But -- first she disappeared and I didn't know what happened to her -- and now this…" 

"Hey, I said I know how you feel. Forget it." 

Eric made a deliberate effort to relax, consciously loosening his muscles one by one as he watched Nightwing pull a tiny set of tools from his boot cuff and start to work on the door. "Thought you left town," he said after a few moments. "How'd you get involved in this?" 

"I was still here, finishing my vacation. Tried to help when Bio-Lab was attacked. And then you, Wes, and Jen were gone… I did what I could to help out. Some friends found this place for me. And when I don't contact them… Batman'll get help for us. Or show up himself." 

"Yeah. But when?" 

"Already on the way, I hope." 

* * *

Back on the beach, once again. For a moment Wes was simply thankful to be home again, the buildings of Silver Hills visible in the distance, no rain forest, no dinosaurs, just seagulls circling as the gentle ocean waves lapped at the shore. He took a deep breath of sea air, the coolness refreshing after days of humid heat and unfamiliar smells. 

As they all left the timeship, he saw Tony and Doug stop to stare around them, smiles breaking out on their faces. How much more must they be feeling, after being lost in time for almost two years? He watched them take a few steps away. 

"Look… just look at that," Doug said softly, pointing to the city in the distance. "Civilization." 

"Never thought skyscrapers would look so beautiful," Tony said, his voice just as reverent. 

Doug laughed. "Right now I'd be happy to breathe polluted city air…" 

"Get stuck in a traffic jam…" 

"Oh, God, to be in a crowd of people…" 

"You'll get your chance," Wes said, smiling. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed Steve Miller. "Steve?" he said when Miller's voice answered. 

_"Wes?"_

"Yeah, it's me. I'm back." 

_"Oh, thank God… I mean, welcome back, sir."_

Tony and Doug were staring, fascinated. "Is that a radio communications device? It's so small!" Tony exclaimed. 

Wes was tempted to laugh. "It's just a telephone. Operates by radio waves, relayed through towers connected by a network. They're very common now." 

"Wow," Doug said. "I forgot we have thirty-five years of technology to catch up with." 

"Do you have flying cars?" Tony asked eagerly. 

"Nope. They do in Alex's time. But wait'll you see our computers." Wes returned his attention to Steve. "Have you heard anything from Eric?" 

_"No. Isn't he with you?"_

"Afraid not." Wes's spirits plunged again. "Well, you'd better send a car for us. We're on the beach, at the usual place." 

_"Yes, sir. Sir, there's a message for you. Urgent. Said he knows where Norman Ryder may be."_ Steve's voice hesitated. _"Said he's Batman."_

* * *

"Norman, you used to be a nice guy. You haven't killed anyone… why not just let us go? Don't get yourself in any more trouble." Gaby smiled as charmingly as she could, considering how frightened she was. 

"How would you know if I was nice or not? You never bothered to find out." 

"We just never came into contact. Maybe if I got to know you now, things would be different." 

"Right. Now you think I'm just a freak." 

"I'm sorry I said that. I was upset. Can you blame me?" 

"I thought you'd _see_, now," he said, sounding like a petulant child. "I thought you'd finally realize that I'm much better than that muscle-bound idiot. That _I'm_ the one you should be with." 

Gaby ignored the prickle of anger that shot through her and smiled again. They were back in the office that Norman had put her in, him sitting on the sofa. She had chosen a chair to prevent him from getting too close. She felt her eyes drawn to Eric's morpher, lying on the end of the sofa where Norman had carelessly tossed it, almost hidden behind the rolled-up jacket she had used as a pillow. If she could only get it… and get to Eric somehow… 

"I know you're very smart. I'm really impressed with everything you've been able to do. Maybe you're right, that we should be together. But -- I could never go for a guy who hurts people. If you'd let us go, I'd be impressed with that too." She put her most sincere and appealing look on her face, hoping she wasn't going too far. But for all his brains, she suspected Norman wasn't very clever in certain areas. 

"Do you really think you could fall in love with me?" He looked hopeful. 

"You said it yourself, you're smart -- and now you're strong, and powerful -- I'd have to be crazy not to notice you now." _Yeah, you're noticeably nutso,_ she thought savagely, smiling warmly. 

"I don't know -- you seemed so angry before…" 

"Well, I _was_ angry… no girl likes to be snatched out of a parking lot in the middle of the night. You scared me." She pouted at him. _Can't believe this fruitcake is falling for this routine…_

Norman smiled at her. "But now you forgive me?" 

"Of course. I know you meant it for the best. For my own good." She lowered her eyes shyly. _I'd love to kick the living crap out of you, for your own good, Bozo._ "If you'd let Eric and Nightwing go..." she started. 

"Why do you care so much about _them_?" Norman's voice was sharp. 

"Well..." She licked her lips, trying not to look nervous. "Eric is hurt. Sick. I don't want you to get in trouble if he... dies." He stared at her suspiciously. "It's just because I really like you..." 

"Then -- prove it." He was on his feet, pulling her up to face him, his smile turning predatory as he leaned in. 

* * *

Wes waited, cautiously looking around, as Jen climbed in through the window behind him. Alex was already crossing the room to a door, opening it a crack, then leaning out to look up and down the hallway it opened onto. He turned to beckon them. 

"Hear it?" he asked, his voice low. 

Wes did hear it, machinery in the distance, metal against metal. Perhaps the sound of cyclobots being manufactured. 

"Ready?" 

Wes and Jen nodded. They were all already morphed, ready for a fight. When they had arrived, they had found a contingent of Silver Guardians already in place, but they had decided to go in alone first. No need to risk the Guardians' lives, not yet. And -- no search warrant, no legal reason to enter the building. 

"I still don't like this," Jen said. "It's breaking and entering." 

Wes turned to her. "That window was open. We didn't break anything." 

"We're still _entering_." 

"We're just looking. Besides, we have reason to think Gaby and Nightwing are here, maybe in trouble." 

"Shhh," Alex hissed. He slowed as they approached an open doorway. Wes and Jen stayed behind him as he flattened against the wall and slowly peered in. A moment later he was back, looking at them. 

"What did you see?" Wes asked in a whisper. 

"This is the place, all right. It's a cyclobot factory." 

"Let me see…" 

"Watch out!" Jen's voice was startlingly loud as she shoved off from the wall. Five cyclobots had rounded a corner behind them and were now breaking into a charge, on the attack. In another moment the three Rangers were retreating into the room, an alarm beginning to sound. 

* * *

Gaby resisted a strong urge to shove Norman away and let him kiss her. But when his hands started to move down her body… She pulled back, giving him another shy smile, trying to look the picture of modest womanhood. "Sorry, I still don't know you very well," she murmured. _And really, really don't want to…_

"This is the best way to get to know each other." He started to kiss her again, pulling her close with a trace of that inhuman strength. 

She said the only thing she could think of to stall him, and maybe get him to do what she _really_ wanted. "Norman, please… I have to tell Eric it's over between us first… I wouldn't feel right…" 

He stared at her for a moment, then grinned and grabbed her hand. "We'll go tell him right now." 

"And Norman… will you let them go? For me?" Again she put all the appeal she could into those words, willing him to agree. 

"If I do… then you'll be mine?" His eyes were bright, but there was a hardness behind them. 

_Do I have a choice?_ A chill ran through her, twisting her stomach into a knot. As she was opening her mouth to answer, a shrill sound ripped through the air. Absurdly, she thought, _Saved by the bell..._

"The intruder alarm!" Norman turned on her, suddenly furious. "_They_ did this! Got out, or called their friends!" 

"How could they? You left them handcuffed!" 

"We'll see! Time to get rid of them, anyway!" He grabbed her wrist, hurting. 

She twisted her arm, and pushed at him, clawing at his hand. With a snarl of anger, he shoved her back, to fall onto the sofa. For a moment she huddled there, her back to him. Then he stepped forward to yank her up, and drag her out of the room. 

Moments later, he was pulling her swiftly through the hallway, on their way to the office where Eric and Nightwing were imprisoned. And Eric's morpher was under Gaby's sweater, securely wedged in her bra. 

* * *

"Someone's coming. Quick, get back on the floor." Nightwing hurriedly slipped his toolkit back in his boot as Eric lay down again, hands behind his back. A moment later the door opened. Eric stared up, feeling both anger and relief, as he heard Nightwing say, "Well, look who's here." 

Gaby and Norman, two cyclobots behind them. He was pulling her, his hand around her arm, fingers digging in. Eric's eyes narrowed in renewed anger. He could see the bruise on her face, where Norman had hit her, could see how frightened she was. They came close, stopping a few feet away, leaving the door open. He could hear an alarm clearly now, and underneath it, faintly, what sounded like blaster fire. 

Norman let go of Gaby and took a step closer, his face livid with anger. "That's the intruder alarm!" he snarled down at them. "You did this, didn't you? Called your friends somehow to attack me!" 

"How could we?" Nightwing demanded. "You took my phone and Eric's morpher, and we both have our hands cuffed!" 

"Maybe it's a false alarm," Eric said with exaggerated patience. 

"I should have gotten rid of you right away!" Norman cried, his voice enraged. He grinned viciously. "I'll take care of you myself!" 

"Norman, you promised you'd let them go!" Gaby cried. 

"We're being attacked because of _them_! I have to eliminate them! Where's my blaster?" He looked around, and then started for a table on the other side of the room. Suddenly a new alarm began to ring, blasting them with a loud shriek. "The fire alarm!" Norman shouted. He hesitated, looking back at the door, then moved for the table -- and his blaster -- again. 

It was now or never. Eric sat up, pausing as a wave of dizziness hit. Seeing Nightwing already standing, he got to his feet with an effort. Gaby stared at them, eyes wide, and then inexplicably stuck a hand into her sweater. 

"Won't be as easy as you thought, Norman!" Nightwing shouted, diving for the mutant. Eric started after him. 

"Eric!" Gaby called. "I think you could use this!" She was holding his morpher out. 

* * *

Wes took a second for a good look, seeing rows of machines, robots in various stages of construction. Other robots operating the machinery and putting parts together, now dropping their work and springing to the attack. In seconds they were in the middle of it, cyclobots surrounding them. 

The fight broke up into separate clusters, each of the three of them with a dozen or more opponents. Wes side-kicked an attacker away, sending it crashing into one of its companions, used a leg sweep to topple a third, drove an elbow into a fourth. With a moment's breather, he summoned his blaster, and shot down numbers five and six. But there were more… 

A concerned glance showed Jen, her arms held behind her in the grip of a robot. She lunged back against it, brought up her feet to kick another in the chest, and used her momentum to flip backwards over the first one's head. Landing behind it, she jumped, pivoting in midair and kicking her former captor onto its face. 

Alex was fighting the old-fashioned way, he plowed into the robots, punching two in the head simultaneously, rocking them back off their feet. Then he spun into a high kick, knocking two more off-balance. His blaster appeared in his hand, and accounted for three cyclobots in three fast shots. 

Wes fought his way to Jen's side, backhanding a robot away from her. Alex joined them a moment later, and they stood back to back, circling, all three opening fire on the mass of cyclobots. Wes raised his blaster to full intensity and swept a solid line of fire at the circle of robots. He saw it happen, a shower of sparks burst from one of the machines as a beam hit it. Then another blaster struck it again, and it exploded in flame. 

In seconds, thick, choking smoke was pouring out, filling the room, and flames began to dance across the wall and floor, quickly catching in machine oil, plastic parts, and insulation. The cyclobots backed away, then flocked to the fire, running into it in an apparent attempt to put it out. Their flammable parts caught, filling the room with walking torches. 

"Come on, we've got to get out of here!" Alex shouted. 

Smoke was starting to pour out of the factory room, drifting under the corridor ceiling, dimming the lights. They ran, quickly opening doors, searching for Gaby, Nightwing, and Norman Ryder. The fire alarm was shrilling, but Wes knew from the fires he had seen as a Guardian that this old building, with no sprinklers, would go up like a matchbox before help could arrive. They only had minutes to search, and then try to get out alive themselves. 

* * *

"Quantum Power!" Eric felt the surge of energy and strength flow through him, almost banishing the weakness. But this time he felt a surge of heat, too, his fever seeming to intensify. A wave of dizziness threatened to overcome him. He blinked away the darkness and concentrated. But when he focused, Nightwing was struggling with a cyclobot, and Norman was already holding his blaster, aiming at Eric. 

"You've ruined everything!" he shouted. "I'll kill all of you!" 

Eric fumbled to draw his blaster, knowing it would take too long, but in the next instant a small object flew across the room, his blurring vision almost unable to follow it. It struck Norman's arm. He yelped in pain and dropped his blaster, rubbing his wrist. 

"You bastard!" he screamed at Nightwing. 

Another object -- which Eric now recognized as a modified throwing star -- whizzed at him, striking his shoulder. By now Eric had his blaster aimed. He fired. Norman screamed again and dropped to his knees. With a snarl at them he grabbed his blaster and retreated behind a cabinet. 

"Eric, give me a hand with these cyclobots!" 

He turned at the shout to see Nightwing cornered by the two robots. He kicked one in the middle, knocking it down. Eric hesitated. His eyes were hazy, his aim unsteady. What if he missed? 

Then Nightwing ducked under a swiping robot arm, twisted and pivoted behind his attacker, kicked it into the wall, and dove behind a chair. The field clear, Eric shot. He needn't have worried, he hit both of them cleanly, leaving them inert piles of useless metal parts. 

But Norman was still very much a problem. He shouted incoherently from his hiding place and fired again, hitting Eric. The shock burned through him, his head whirled, ears roaring, those black spots floating before him again. Reacting by pure instinct, he fell to his stomach and shot back, a long burst bringing smoke wisping from the cabinet and the wall behind it. Smoke that added to the smoke now pouring in from the hallway. 

"Norman, we have to get out of here!" Nightwing shouted. "Just give it up, before we all go up in flames!" 

"No! You'll never take me alive!" 

"Moron," Nightwing muttered. "If that's the way you want it..." 

Then there was a sparkle of light and another painful shock that made Eric gasp as his suit gave out, and he demorphed back into his dirty, bloodstained uniform. He moaned faintly, trying to raise his head. Smoke was filling the room. Eric couldn't see, but neither could Norman. Nightwing crossed to his side. Gaby had appeared on his other side. They ducked as a wild blaster shot came from Norman's direction, then both took his arms, helping him up and staggering out of the room as fast as they could move. In the corridor they paused. 

"Which way?" Gaby asked. 

"I don't know," Nightwing said. "Come on, we have to get out." 

They moved through increasingly blinding smoke. Eric coughed, groaned as pain knifed through his wounded chest, felt himself sinking to his knees as his legs refused to support him any longer. It was so dark -- the air was so hot, it burned his lungs. The others bent over him, coughs shaking both of them. Hands pulled him up. 

He tried, but it was no good, he sank again like a rag doll. They dragged him between them, but the smoke was so thick, they were all racked with coughing. They staggered, slowing. 

"We can't see an exit sign in this!" Gaby cried. "Can't see anything!" 

"Don't give up…" 

They stumbled on, hesitating at the intersections, making turns at random. Eric knew it was no use, but if they didn't have him to drag along, they could move faster, they could crawl on the floor, away from the worst of the smoke. He sank to his knees again, sliding through their weakening grasps. With a last effort he gasped, "Just leave me…" 

"No way in hell," Gaby's voice came, surprisingly cool and calm. 

"What she said," Nightwing agreed. They hauled him up again. 

Then he saw it, even through the smoke and the dimness of his own eyes. A dark form, tall, big, seeming to be made of night and black smoke. For a moment he felt a superstitious fear, not trusting his blurring vision as shadows swirled before him. The form came forward, became solid and human, and spoke in a deep voice. 

"I've got him. We're not far from an exit, follow me." The form -- the man -- lifted him into his arms effortlessly, carrying him swiftly. He wanted to protest, but was too dazed and exhausted to speak. Then everything, the smoke, the pain, the fear, all faded as he sank into darkness. 

* * *

TBC... 


	13. From the Ashes

Wes, Eric, Jen, Alex, Zaskin, Miller, and Mr. Collins belong to Disney/Saban.  
Nightwing/Dick Grayson, Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Oracle/Barbara Gordon belong to DC Comics/Time Warner.  
Tony Newman, Doug Phillips, and Ann MacGregor belong to Irwin Allen Productions.  
I am using them without permission, however I have not and don't expect to make money from this.  
Gaby, Rick, Norman, and any others you don't recognize are mine. 

Rated PG-13 : Crude language; violence; sexual references. 

The end of another story. I've been really overwhelmed by the response to this one, just glad so many of you seemed to enjoy it. Special thanks to Cecilia as always for beta reading, and Jenny for encouragement. My gratitude to everyone who read this, to those who reviewed, and especially those who reviewed regularly and made valuable comments. You know who you are. Reviews are what let me know if I'm on the right track. Thank you. 

The Time Tunnel

* * *

* * *

From the Ashes

* * *

"Hey, look who's with us again." Eric blinked, his mind refusing to focus at first, eyes moving around the room to fix on Nightwing, standing near his bed. 

They were in the Silver Guardians infirmary, a place he usually disliked. The sight of it was welcome now. A glance down at himself showed a strange contraption, wire leads stuck onto his skin at chest and arm, feeding into a small box covered with controls. Instantly he recognized it as a Time Force medical unit. It was doing its job. The swelling in his arm was already decreasing, and the redness around his wounds had faded visibly, the pain now only a healing ache. 

"What happened?" he asked groggily. 

"We got out alive, is what happened. Just barely." 

"How do you feel?" He heard Gaby's voice and turned his head to see her in a seat on the other side of the bed, her face and clothes smudged with soot. 

"Gaby…" he said. "Are you okay?" 

"I'm fine. We were worried about you for a while." 

"Don't be." Her hand was already holding his. He tightened his grip and pulled her a little closer. "I feel just fine, now," he said softly. They shared a happy smile for a few seconds, until a less pleasant thought struck him. "Wes," he said. "Tony and Doug..." 

"We're all fine," he heard a familiar voice say. As he looked back up, two more faces came into view. Wes and Jen, holding hands and smiling down at him. 

Wes grinned. "Hey, partner. Glad to have you back." 

"You too, Wes. Jen. You okay?" 

"Fine. Alex showed up to get us right after you disappeared." He saw Alex step up behind them, giving him a nod and a restrained smile. And a tall man wearing a mask and cape appeared over Nightwing's shoulder, looking him over with a coldly blank expression. 

Eric stared at him for a moment and then looked back to Wes. "What happened to Norman? Did you get him?" 

Wes frowned. "No sign of him. The building was completely destroyed in the fire. No one saw him get out. When what's left has cooled down, we can start looking for a body." 

"Hmm. Too bad. But I can't say I'm really sorry for him." He glanced at Gaby, then back at the others. "Norman said that time machine brought me back here, but why? And why just me?" 

"I think I can answer that," Alex said. "Rick's time machine was programmed to send him to the same time Tony Newman and Doug Phillips were stranded in. Then, after a few minutes, it was supposed to bring the three of them back automatically. But when he triggered the machine during the cyclobot attack, there were four people within range for it to transport. It was only set up for a maximum of three. It took them to the wrong time." 

"We were also in the late Cretaceous," Jen said. "It looked exactly the same as the time you, Wes, Tony, and Doug were in. But it wasn't." 

"Very close, but not exactly the same. The transport was only off by a few thousand years. Not much time in terms of Earth's history, but…" 

"That's why we didn't see any trace of each other," Wes added. 

"Right. Rick's machine detected the malfunction, and tried again, by restarting its transport cycle. This time Wes and Eric were in range. It sent them to the correct time, where they found Tony and Doug." 

"Why didn't it bring us back then?" Eric asked. 

"It ran out of power at that point. Norman's cyclobots unplugged it and took it. Later, when he hooked it up to a power source and reactivated it in his factory, it picked up where it left off and tried to retrieve you. But you, Wes, Tony and Doug were not in one place at the time, you were spread out on that path; Wes at the bottom, Tony and Doug at the top. My theory is that it simply picked up the person in the middle." 

"Which was me." 

"Right." 

"Hey," Wes exclaimed. "I thought time travel could only happen in certain fixed jumps, always at least a hundred years or so. If Tony and Doug came from 1968, how could we have jumped to the same time they were in?" 

"I've been in contact with Time Force command. They managed to find some information about the Time Tunnel technology. It used a different principle from our timehole generators. It didn't have that restriction, it could transport to any time. Unfortunately, as Tony and Doug found out, it was unreliable. Time jumps were often unpredictable. That method of time travel was never used again." 

"Where are Tony and Doug now?" 

Wes took over with a smile. "In the Guardians' barracks, probably getting a shower and a good meal. After we got back, we sent them here and went to Norman's factory. We accidentally started that fire. Searched the building as long as we could, then we got out, and found the four of you outside." 

"How'd you know I was there?" 

"We didn't. Batman told us that was where Gaby and Nightwing probably were. You were a bonus." 

Nightwing grinned at him. "Yeah, Batman was already on his way out here. When I didn't report in, he called the Guardians." 

Eric looked up to stare at Batman, seeing an expression of icy disapproval. He lifted an eyebrow briefly with a hint of disdain to cover the fact that he was impressed. Very impressed. Then, to his surprise, the other man smiled and held out his hand. 

"A pleasure to meet you. Any friend of Nightwing's is a friend of mine. He's told me good things about you." 

Feeling slightly dazed -- which he was careful to hide -- Eric withdrew his good hand from Gaby and shook. "I assume you're the one who hauled my ass out of there," he said. 

"That's right." 

"Well, thanks." 

"Yeah," Nightwing added, looking up at his former partner. "Thanks for getting here so fast, and for bailing us out." 

"Anytime. You know that." Again a smile appeared on that stern face. 

Eric's eyes moved back to Nightwing. "Any friend of yours, huh? So now you think we're friends." 

"Yeah, I think so. Even if you tried to kick my butt at that warehouse…" 

"Would have, too." 

"In your dreams, pal." 

"Just wait'll I'm back in fighting shape." 

"Like to, but we're leaving tonight." 

"So soon?" Eric was surprised to find he was disappointed. 

"I was supposed to be home yesterday. I've got… certain commitments." 

"Speaking of which, we should go," Batman said softly. 

"He hates to socialize," Nightwing said with a rueful smile. "We just stayed long enough to make sure you're okay." He held out his hand. 

"So long, again," Eric said. "Take care of that girl of yours. And thanks for your help. Both of you." 

"See you sometime." He smiled at Gaby. "Nice meeting you too. I admire a woman who can put up with this guy." 

She laughed. "He's really just an old softie at heart." With a shy glance at Batman she added, "It was a real honor to meet both of you." 

They all turned and started away, stopping at the doorway for final goodbyes. Eric watched them exchange a few remarks and shake hands, before Batman and Nightwing disappeared out the door. Then he turned to Gaby again, taking her hand, his face becoming serious. 

"Norman… did he -- did he do anything to you?" 

"No. My virtue is still intact. Such as it is." 

He smiled at her, watched her smile back as she leaned closer. "Old softie, huh?" he murmured, fingers lightly touching her cheek. "Get everyone out of here and lock the door, and I'll show you what a softie I am…" 

"Love to… but -- frankly -- you could use a shower." 

"You smell more like an ashtray than a rose yourself." He grinned and pulled her down for a kiss. "But I don't mind…" 

* * *

"This is it." Wes turned off the ignition. He got out of the car and gazed across the street at the house. It was nice, on the large side, comfortable looking, with a rust-colored door and off-white siding. Tony and Doug got out more slowly, and stood looking. 

"This is going to be strange," Tony said. 

Doug looked and sounded nervous. "Very strange. For her as well as us." 

"Well, no point in standing here. Let's go." Wes led the way across the street, up the short walkway, and to the door. He rang the bell and smiled at his companions as they fidgeted uncomfortably. 

The door opened to reveal Rick, smiling wide. He greeted them and stood aside to let them enter. Standing behind him, looking at least as nervous as Tony and Doug, was a woman in late middle-age, tall, still slender and good-looking, her short black hair liberally streaked with gray. Lieutenant Quinn stood beside her, his dark face blank, her hand firmly in his. She didn't even look at Wes, her eyes going to Tony and then Doug, her lips trembling slightly as she smiled. Silently Tony stepped up to hug her, then Doug was holding her tight. 

"Tony… Doug… You don't know how good it is to see you," she murmured, voice cracking a little, eyes glimmering with tears. 

"Ann…" Doug said. "It's wonderful to see you. It's been so long…" 

"Thirty-five years, for me," she sighed. "For you it's only been..." 

"Almost two years," Tony supplied. 

"I had given up, long ago. Resigned myself to the idea that both of you were gone forever. That I would never even know what happened to you…" She sniffled, smiling shakily as a tear found its way down her cheek. 

"They told us how hard you tried, Ann," Tony said gently. "And it was your son who saved us." 

"Yes. Rick." She reached a hand to touch Rick's arm. "You met my son at Bio-Lab. And this is my husband, Robert Quinn." 

They all shook hands. Doug smiled, although Wes thought he saw more than a trace of regret in his face. "Strange to think of you being married, with a grown son," he said. 

Ann glanced at Quinn apologetically. He smiled and nodded. "I know," she said. "Sometimes I thought you and I… but I guess it wasn't meant to be. And that was a long time ago. Robert and I have been married for twenty-eight years now." She took her husband's arm and smiled tremulously again. "Wouldn't know it to look at the two of you. Still so young…" 

"You look great, Ann," Tony said. 

She laughed. "Still the ladies' man. Nice to know some things haven't changed." 

There was a brief silence, until Doug turned to Rick. "I don't think we've actually thanked you yet. You saved our lives, and we're both very grateful." 

Rick shrugged, looking both embarrassed and pleased. "I'm just glad I could help. But I'm sorry it went wrong the way it did." He glanced at Wes. 

"Yeah, well," Wes said with a grin. "Everything turned out okay. Eric's already well enough to go home. And Dr. Zaskin still hasn't stopped talking about how exciting it was to see real dinosaurs. Even if they almost ate him." 

"He's a real scientist, all right. I wonder if he'll try to write a paper about it." 

"I hope not. Can't let the whole world find out about time travel." 

"Alex said we can't say anything either," Tony agreed. "He said we're outside our own time now, and we have to keep a low profile to avoid interfering with history." 

Ann turned to him and Doug again. "Have you decided what you're going to do now?" 

"Not yet," Tony said. "Our parents are gone now..." He paused, blinking for a moment. "The rest of our families, our friends -- we can't contact them. No way to explain what happened." 

"We were both declared legally dead years ago," Doug said. "Officially we don't exist." 

"I can help with that," Wes said. "Or Bio-Lab can. My father will hire both of you as scientists, if you want. And either way, he'll get you new identities, and help you get back on your feet." 

"Thanks. But I'm not sure how useful we'd be. We're both thirty-five years behind in our field." Tony glanced at Doug. "We have a lot to catch up on." 

"We can decide all that later," Doug replied. "We have time." He smiled. "Right now it just feels good to have a future to worry about." 

* * *

It had been over a week now, and they were still picking up the pieces, still making repairs in the Bio-Lab laboratory that had been attacked, some of them still healing from their wounds. Wes watched Eric move impatiently through the rubble of Norman Ryder's burned-out factory. He smiled, glad to see his partner back on the job, and looking so well. A very slight stiffness was the only sign of what he had been through. Before he left, Alex had said there would not even be any permanent scars. 

Gaby's situation was worse, in a way. There was no sign of Norman's body, no evidence that he had died in that fire. As the days went by with no news, she had become nervous, and begun to show a reluctance to be alone. And Eric had quietly started to spend more time with her, staying at her apartment or bringing her to his house every night and weekend that he was free. He had also started having a couple of Guardians follow her and watch her building whenever he couldn't be with her himself. 

"What's wrong?" 

Wes turned his head to find Jen's face smiling at him. She was there officially, as a Silver Hills PD detective, keeping an eye on evidence collection. He reached a hand, and clasped hers when she took it. "What makes you think anything's wrong?" 

"You were frowning." 

He sighed. "It's starting to look like Norman got away, alive." 

"I know." She turned to look out over the destroyed building. "I wouldn't wish anyone dead, especially in a fire, but…" 

"But Norman could mean more trouble." 

"Yes." She was quiet, stepping closer to him as he rested an arm around her shoulders, and then went on softly. "Rick's time machine was destroyed in the fire, and he swore never to build another one. But Norman knows about it. Gaby said he was studying it. That could be _big_ trouble." 

"I know." Wes sighed again. 

"I feel bad for Gaby, having to wonder if he's going to pop out of some dark corner and grab her again someday." 

"And Eric. He doesn't show it, but I can tell he's worried." 

"Here he comes." 

They watched Eric pick his way out of the ruins and head for them. He greeted them with nods, but no smile. "Still nothing," he said, and turned to look back. "I think he's alive. He's out there somewhere, thinking about revenge." 

"Eric, maybe Gaby's not the only one who needs protection. He probably has more of a grudge against you than me or Jen…" 

"I can take care of myself." 

"What about Nightwing?" 

Eric glanced at them. "I called him. But he's all the way on the other side of the country. Besides, no one knows who he really is, no one's going to attack him at home. Maybe he and Batman have the right idea, keeping their identities secret." 

"Maybe." 

"Eric…" Jen started. When he turned to look at her she went on. "We're always here if you need us. You can always ask for help." 

"I know." His face warmed for a moment before he glanced away. "Anything new with the wedding plans?" he asked after a few seconds of silence. 

"Well, I had a lot of time to think, back in that cave. Kind of got my priorities straight," Wes said. "I think we should get our own house, like Jen said, and get married in the winter." 

Jen turned to face him. "But Wes, you were right in the first place. We should stay with your father. He's family. That's the most important thing. And a spring wedding would be so beautiful…" 

"Do you really want to wait that long? And we need to be on our own, in our own place, just the two of us, independent -- until we start having kids…" 

"There's no rush. And your dad has done so much for us, I really don't want to leave him alone… that's such a big, beautiful house, why should we leave?" 

"But Jen, honey…" 

"Wes, sweetheart…" 

"Oh, Christ," Eric muttered. "Sorry I bought it up. If you two lovebirds will excuse me…" 

* * *

* End *


End file.
